

## The Euclidian:

## The Unforeseen Alliance

## Jay Cannon

Copyright © 2012 Jay Cannon (JC)

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used, reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means whatsoever or stored in a database retrieval system without written permission except in those cases of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

For more information contact the author at EuclidianBook@gmail.com.

First edition: December 2012

Cover illustration by Igor Kieryluk

Editing by Joel Palmer

Book design and formatting by Cheryl Perez

For my sons Davon Joharri and Dakar Jorré and all those who dare to chase their dreams.

### Prologue

"The Euclidian have arrived on Earth and started stripping it of its resources. Earth's defenses have been rendered ineffective with the removal of all military vehicles, ships, personnel and nuclear weapons. The XO of the _Andrea_ in his greed decided to overthrow the captain while Morgan and Pico gain unexpected allies."
Chapter 1

The Awakening

"Somebody stop the pain, the pain. I can't stand it anymore. Where am I? HELLO! Can anybody hear me? Please help me," she cried out to no avail. She was in the midst of an overwhelming darkness _. Am I blind or have they shoved me into some dark pit_? "Oh the pain," she cried out. _I know I'm not dead because the pain I'm experiencing is too intense. But how can I be alive when my body is in so much pain_? She whimpers uncontrollably not understanding her condition or her fate. She lets out a low groan and passes out. Hours passed before she came to. She attempted to take an inventory of her surroundings, but her senses were fractured. She couldn't see anything and was not sure why. The only sound that shared the darkness with her was her own breathing. _There was that familiar smell again, a recent smell, but what was its origin_?

She tried to feel around for something, but all she felt was the dampness of the floor. She tried to get up, but the pain prevented her and she passed out.

She awoke, but how long had she been lying there? She could feel the hunger inside her, but it was not her focus. Her pain was the distraction she could not ignore. She tried to wipe her face, embarrassed by her beslobbered state.

_I soiled myself, I wet myself, my nose is running and I can't stop crying. I have to be bleeding as well considering how bad I hurt. I can't possibly live much longer with all this loss of fluid. Is this how I die? Is this how it ends? In the dark. A million light years from home. My fate unknown by anyone I know. I wanted my life to make a difference. I wanted to make life better for my people, but now my moribund life will probably end in a career of insignificance._ She started to whimper uncontrollably then passed out.

She came to again. The pain had subsided a bit. Partially due to the numbness that had engulfed the left side of her body. She looked around once more and tried to see something; anything. But there was nothing to see except the darkness. She tried to remember how she got there, but didn't have a clue.

_The last thing I remember was being with that asshole Cobalt. Wang ba dan! Once again I give myself to a man and he screwed me over. Obviously even alien men enjoy abusing me_.

Li Xiao thought back to happier times during her childhood. She would spend all day in the rice fields with her parents. In the beginning she would ride in a pouch on her mother's back. As she grew older she worked beside her mother tending to the rice fields on her father's farm outside of Nanjing. Her mother's mother also lived with them. Her mother's father and father's parents were killed during the Eight Years' War of Resistance. Her parents did not want the farming life for their daughter. They felt she was a bright child with a future and when Li Xiao became a teenager she was sent to her aunt and uncle's house in Beijing to go to a private school with her cousins Ema and Maya.

While in school Li Xiao excelled in languages. She liked the new sounds she could make with her mouth. She wanted to find a job where she could use her talent for languages. Maybe she could even prevent another occupation of their land. She decided that she would be a diplomat and see the world. Possibly help change the world. Evenings and weekends she practiced her language skills by being a guide at the Forbidden City or giving private tours of the Great Wall and sites around it. Upon graduating from college she decided to join the military as a way to give back to her country and learn self-defense skills. She spent every day, after basic training, learning small arms, sniper and martial arts techniques.

After completing basic training Li Xiao was assigned to a general who worked with the American military. She was to be his translator and assistant bodyguard. She spent a great deal of time learning how to protect him, though there was little danger of him being attacked. She was more in danger from the foreign officers and diplomats that he met with. They would often get drunk after all-day meetings and come on to her. When going to the bathroom Li Xiao found herself using the Adrien stall maneuver, where she would have one foot on the floor and one on the stall door to keep the drunks from bursting in on her. She learned that maneuver from Adrien, an American friend who worked for the American military as a translator. She met Adrien in a bar in Amsterdam where the women's restrooms were less than ideal. Adrien warned Li Xiao about patrons bursting into the stalls and taught Li Xiao her technique.

Li Xiao was resigned to the fact that fending off drunken diplomats was probably going to be her destiny until one fateful evening while she was guarding the general and a Chinese diplomat alone. They were leaving a bar in the Soi Cowboy district of Bangkok, when they were approached by three men looking to rob them. The men saw that the general and diplomat were drunk and viewed Li Xiao as little consequence, being she was a woman. They pulled knives on the three and demanded money. When Li Xiao protested, one of the men swung his knife at her and laughed. Li Xiao backed away and took a karate stance.

"You want to dance little lady?" Laughed the assailant. "How about I dog collar around your neck and make you my bitch for the rest of the night. I'm sure my friends would enjoy partying with you."

"How about you leave before I make you my bitch?" Li Xiao replied. "Otherwise, the only party you three will be attending tonight will be in a hospital emergency room."

"Just let them have our money so they can go away," the diplomat protested.

"Too late for that," the assailant replied. "Cutesy here wants to dance and I'm going to make her dance on the end of my knife."

The assailant smirked and then jabbed at Li Xiao with his knife. She shifted to the left, broke his right elbow and shoved his knife into his thigh. She then spun to her right to engage one of the other men that was coming towards her. She grabbed him by the wrist, pulled him towards her and chopped him across the throat. He went down gasping for air and the third guy ran off. The general and diplomat stood there looking at her stunned.

The next day during breakfast the general asked Li Xiao if she would be interested in leaving the army and becoming the diplomat's body guard.

"What about my military obligation?" She asked.

Don't worry about that," replied the general. "The army will gladly accept your resignation. After all, being a translator and bodyguard to the Chinese Ambassador to the United States is still serving your country."

Li Xiao was surprised, excited and honored at the offer. "How can I possibly say no?"

"Then it's done. I'll start the paperwork once we return to Beijing."

"Li Xiao," started the ambassador, "I am delighted that you would accept this position. After saving my life last night I knew you were someone I wanted to add to my team. Welcome aboard," he stated extending his hand to her.

Her assignment would be in Washington D.C. where she could perfect her English. She loved living there. She had a beautiful little apartment with a view of the capital building. She got to attend diplomatic balls, stay in nice hotels during trips across America and meet the President of the United States. She spent most morning jogging around the National Mall and practicing her martial arts skills.

Her assignment soon took a negative turn when she found out that it required her to be a pawn in diplomatic negotiations, which included that she be more than friendly to foreign diplomats. When she protested, her boss lectured her about the obligations of her position and her patriotic duty. If she refused to support her boss, she risked being sent back to Beijing in disgrace.

She reluctantly agreed to entertain foreign diplomats as ordered. In return she was showered with lavish gifts, to which she quickly became accustomed. A few months later after helping complete a negotiation to the Chinese benefit, she was introduced to the countryman she helped to complete the negotiation. He turned out to be the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations. He was slated to become the Secretary General of the United Nations and wanted her to be his attaché and part-time lover during times when his wife was away. He assured her that she would not have to sleep with anyone else.

"Miss Li Xiao, this will be a very important position," the U.N. ambassador stated. "You will assist me with all of my foreign negotiations, attend diplomatic social events and travel with me across the globe. I know you have a passion for languages. At the U.N. you will have an opportunity to learn and practice almost any language you desire."

"Sounds appealing, but New York can be an expensive place to live," she replied.

"Very true, but don't worry I have been given an extremely generous budget and I assure you that you won't want for anything while under my care."

"Then how can I possibly say no," Li Xiao smiled.

She accepted the offer and a few weeks later she was staying in a beautiful apartment on the upper-eastside of Manhattan. This time the number of diplomatic events, foreign travel and introductions to foreign dignitaries increased enormously. She couldn't believe her luck. She finally got the dream job she had always hoped for. She didn't like sleeping with her boss, but felt it was part of her diplomatic duty. Anyway, she never had time for a real relationship.

A year and a half later that all changed, when she was replaced by a younger, prettier version of herself and given a menial job with a lot fewer perks. In addition, she would no longer be able to afford her posh upper-eastside apartment.

Before being forced to move out she was contacted out of the blue by what she thought was a Chinese agent. He made her an offer to get her job back in return for information about all nuclear weapons that might be a threat to China.

"In addition to getting your job back," the agent stated, "I can make sure that new floozy is made to scrub toilets while I make you a very wealthy woman."

"Well, how can I possible say no to that offer," replied Li Xiao with a smile.

Li Xiao later found out that her benefactor was Cobalt, an alien from another planet that recruited spies in order to gather reconnaissance on planets before they were to be attacked. That's when she decided to see if she could hitch a ride on the ship from her generous benefactor. _Learning Earth languages is one thing. To be able to learn intergalactic languages would just be wonderful_.

However, just when she thought things were going well he shot her with some sort of beam from a gun he was holding and the next thing she knew she was waking up in this impenetrable darkness.

Her left arm, which was in pain, was now numb. Her right arm, while still sore, was movable. She pushed along the floor to see what she could feel. The floor was sticky as if some fluid had dried on it. She thought it might be her own blood, but she smelled it and recognized the smell of the Lardexian Mind Bender Cobalt had given her. She could also feel bits of glass on the floor.

_Cobalt must have come to visit me, saw my condition and dropped the glass full of the beverage next to me._ She began to whimper again, but soon composed herself.

_I've got to try to move._ _Try to get up. Maybe I can get out of here somehow._

She twisted her body around to see if she could feel a wall or furniture that she could use to pull herself up. She swung her arm back behind her and it hit a wall that moved slightly. The wall had a familiar feel and sound to it. _It couldn't be!_ She thought. She made another effort to throw her arm back behind her and this time she attempted to reach under the wall and she grabbed the edge of a door. She recognized the door and started to cry realizing where she must be. She had to be lying in the bottom of her shower. She had no idea what that meant, but knew she had to pull herself to a phone before she died in there.

Li Xiao used her right arm to grab the edge of the shower and pulled herself out of the shower towards the bathroom door. It took what seemed like an eternity to reach the door. She reached for the door handle and twisting it down, pulled the door open. Peering into the adjoining room, she confirmed that it was indeed her bedroom by the familiar clock sitting on the nightstand. The only thing left to do was reach her phone and dial 911. Slowly Li Xiao dragged herself across her floor feeling pain in every movement. Her muscles ached, breathing was difficult and she found it a struggle to keep her senses about her. There were moments when she wasn't sure where she was anymore. Maybe her disorientation was due to a drug-induced delirium.

She found herself losing consciousness, but fought through it. After what seemed like hours of clawing and crying she yanked the phone from the nightstand, poked away at the keypad and rambled indiscernibly at the voice at the other end. In a daze she went from darkness to looking up at flickers of light as she was pushed down the hallway in a gurney in an emergency room being worked on. In her stupor she saw Cobalt smiling down at her.

"Don't worry Xiao," you're going to pull through this," his voice said.

"Yea, and when I do I'm going to pull your heart from your chest," she responded.

"Did you say something?" The doctor asked leaning close to Li Xiao's mouth. But she had drifted into unconsciousness.

After a thorough examination it was determined that Li Xiao had suffered a dislocated left shoulder, cracked ribs, a bruised hip, two twisted ankles, lacerated lips and a concussion. She lay in her hospital bed medicated for several weeks healing from her injuries. _I've been given a second chance here and I don't want to waste it_ , thought Li Xiao. _Once I'm out of this hospital I'm going to focus on making a positive difference for my people._

When Li Xiao was finally released, a nurse wheeled her to the front door of hospital where she caught a cab for home. She arrived home limping, but alive. The first thing on her mind was investigating her shower. With the lights on she noticed the remains of a broken glass and a Jimmy Choo bag with twenty million Euros spilling out of it.

She pushed the money into the bag and sat on her bed to count the money. She dumped the money from the bag onto the bed to count it and in the middle of the bundles of Euros she found some sort of device. It was like a Windows phone, but square and about 13 centimeters on a side. There was a blank display window in the middle, a button in each corner and on the sides and a bar centered at the top and bottom of the device. There was a glowing line at one edge that she decided was the bottom of the device. She turned it over and looked it up and down. She finally figured that it had to of come from Cobalt's ship. He had left her a gift.

She finally decided to see what it would do. One by one, she pushed each of the buttons until something happened. Pushing the top right button turned the device on. The screen showed the room where she was sitting. She slid her finger across the screen and the image moved across her apartment and then out the building. She used her finger to slide the display back into her room. She then pinched the screen with her fingers and she saw the image on the screen move above her. When she spread her fingers across the screen she saw the apartment below her. Twisting her fingers around the screen turned the image around on the screen. However, the view only looked down.

Li Xiao wanted to be able to pan around the room. She tried moving her fingers around the screen in different ways with no results. Then she rested her hands on the screen to think and spun her fingers around and she saw the viewing angle change. _How clever she thought!_

Li Xiao played around with different viewing angles until she had it perfected. She was amazed that she could see the back of her own head. She even looked inside her head, which she found a little creepy. Somehow it was able to show images inside her head where she presumed there would be no light.

She decided to see if she could find her parent's house outside Nanjing China. She pinched the screen until the image was above the planet Earth. She then slid her finger sideways along the screen and then down until she was over her hometown. She then spread her fingers across the screen until she was over her parent's house and then inside where her family was preparing for evening tea. She adjusted the angle of the camera so she could see the entire room. Her father was sitting at the table while her mother and grandmother were setting the table.

She watched for a while amazed that she could see them. She then started pressing the other buttons to see what they would do. She pressed the bar at the top and noticed that she could hear them speaking. They were unable to hear her though when she tried to speak to them. She pressed the top left button and it displayed a list of items on the screen using characters she did not recognize. She pressed the button again and the screen was cleared.

Li Xiao pressed the button on the left and a glowing outline appeared around her mother. Then the screen did something strange. It started following her mother around as she moved. She moved the screen and it stopped following her. Her grandmother walked by and she pressed the button again and her grandmother was outlined and the screen followed her. She pressed the button on the right, which was similar to the button on the left and the screen switched to her mother. Pressing the button over and over again toggled between the two women.

Pressing the button on the left removed the outline from the person at the center of the screen and the screen stopped following her. She pressed the bottom-left button and it didn't seem to do anything.

She pressed the lower bar and suddenly fell on top of her parent's table, knocking the teapot, cups and plates onto the floor. Her parents and grandmother looked at her in amazement.

"Where did you come from Li Xiao? Asked her father. "You seemed to fall from the ceiling."

"I just jumped into the room to surprise you and lost my footing," she lied hoping they would believe her.

They did not quite understand her explanation, but took her at her word. She apologized for the distraction, put the device in her pocket and helped them cleanup. While her sudden appearance was disturbing they were happy to see her and Li Xiao was happy to be able to visit home after being away for such a long while. She spent a great deal of time speaking with her parents and trying to understand how life was for them.

For the most part her family was happy. The government provided the security and health care that they needed. They had plenty of money to sustain them. They were concerned at the way some people were arrested or even killed for speaking out against the government. Her parents felt that governments should embrace criticism as a way to improve themselves.

Li Xiao had a final cup of tea with her family, hugged them all, walked out the door and beamed back to her apartment. She adjusted the location so she would fall from the ceiling, but set down gently upon her bed. She spent the next couple of days playing with the device, but there were still some features she did not understand.
Chapter 2

The Tammarians

Tammaria was a planet in the Storm planetary system. It was used as an outpost for the Euclidian military. They had several bases there. The planet consisted of one well-known humanoid species. The Tammarians were primitive hunter gatherers that lived in tribes. They had yet to advance beyond using stone tools. They lived in small huts made from the surrounding vegetation.

For the most part, the Euclidian left the planet intact. The only thing they harvested from the planet was the famous abbig fruit, from which Tammarian grog was made. The grog was an alcoholic beverage that the Tammarians learned to make eons ago. The Tammarian taught the Euclidian how to make the grog. In return, the Euclidian taught the Tammarians how to grow the fruit more efficiently in order to increase its yield. In that way they felt they compensated the Tammarians for the fruit that they took from them every year.

The fruit was not very tasty on its own. But after being turned into a beverage it became quite a delicacy. A person drinking the elixir experienced immediate euphoria. The effects lasted about 30 minutes and those partaking in the grog would experience no ill side effects. The feeling the grog gave individuals was not inebriation or lethargy, but exhilaration. It was also an aphrodisiac. It cured depression, pessimism and sadness. More importantly, it worked on all species, which made it very valuable.

The Euclidian held exclusive rights to the planet and therefore the fruit. As such, they kept all others away from the planet. For that very reason Chaell was surprised when one of his scouts captured an Alpha wandering around the planet while they were there picking up several tons of the abbig fruit that had been recently harvested.

"So what were you doing on the planet?" Chaell asked the Alpha male they found.

"I was left behind when the crew from my ship left in haste," he replied. "I was camping in a remote region and when I returned to our encampment everyone was gone. I can only assume they were trying to avoid being seen by your ship."

"That sounds a bit flimsy. You couldn't use your communicator to call your ship?"

"We don't have the fancy ones the Euclidians use. The ship was out of range by the time I realized I was left behind."

"Is anyone else left on the planet?"

"Not that I have seen."

"Why don't I believe you? How about I let my guys work you over a bit until you are ready to tell me everything you know?"

"How about you shove a Tammarian beetle up your nose?"

"You can be insolent if you want, but we have ways of getting the truth out of you."

"Go ahead. I'm sure your government would be happy to hear how you treated me."

The treaty with the Alphas forbade their mistreatment. Though Captain Shisal did not care for the Alphas he did not want to risk crossing the government over a supposedly lost Alpha.

"Relax, we're just having a friendly conversation. No reason to start making threats. Just relax here in this cabin and I'll have my crew bring you some food. For security reasons I can't have you wandering around the ship. We have Deltas onboard and they may not treat you very kindly."

"So transport me back to Euclidia."

"No reason to waste valuable energy. We'll be back on Euclidia before you know it. I'll hand you over to the authorities once we return. I'm sure they will want to hear your story."

"There's no reason to make me wait."

"There's no reason to accommodate you either," Shisal ended. He then stood and left the Alpha in his quarters.

Initially Tammaria was occupied by the Alphas. They were using the planet as a launching point for a raid on the Euclidian home planet. After the Euclidian repelled the Alpha attack, they systematically went through each planet in their system cleansing them of any Alpha presence and claiming the planets for themselves.

The Euclidian were only recently aware that there was a second race of humanoid creatures on Tammaria called the Magi. They lived in caves in a sparsely populated region of the planet. They used their persuasive powers over the other Tammarian species to prevent knowledge of their presence from spreading.

The Magi were short people, not much taller than 160 centimeters. Living in the dark caused their eyes to evolve to permit them to see well in low light conditions. This ability was augmented by their phosphorescent blue eyes, which emitted light. This light permitted them to see in the darkest parts of their caves.

The radiation from their eyes had a strange effect when directed at the eyes of humanoid creatures. It would cause their resistance to be lowered making them susceptible to suggestions. The Alphas discovered the Magi when hiding in their caves to avoid the Euclidian. They noticed the Magi's ability to influence people while watching the Magi interact with the Tammarians and Euclidians. The Magi would convince the Tammarians to share their fruit and cloth with them.

The Alphas understood this power and decided to exploit the Magi for their own benefit. Kenyon Filo was an Alpha commander that devised the plan using the Magi to seek revenge on the Euclidian for destroying their home planet. He used one of their cloaked ships to visit the Magi undetected to start the execution of his plan. His ship was in orbit around Tammaria just close enough to the planet for Commander Filo to beam down to converse with the Magi. Unfortunately one of his crewmembers got captured.

Commander Filo had never been to the Magi caves so he took his aid Lieutenant Lephi Swantik with him who had made several visits to the caves. He prepped Commander Filo about what to expect based on his experiences.

"Commander," Lephi began, "the Magi caves are an enormous labyrinth. They are dark and have numerous, difficult to navigate pathways that can only be learned by traversing them while living there, as there are no maps. Each cave, path, cavern and even large stones have names, which the Magi use for navigation. Unfortunately they have no written language, so there are no signs. They just memorize the name for everything."

"So how are we supposed to find our way around once we get inside?" Asked Commander Filo.

"I found us a guide to take us through the exterior caves and into the central cavern, which hosts the seat of their government. She speaks Euclidian from conversing with the ones that are based here. She is one of the ones I saw charming the Euclidian soldiers with her eyes."

"So how do we protect ourselves against their charms?"

"The lenses I placed in our goggles should help protect us. Just in case, we must also be careful not to simultaneously look into their eyes."

"I hope you're right Lephi. A lot is riding on this. So where do we meet our guide?"

"Just inside the cave entrance ahead of us. We just need to climb a few more meters and we will be there."

"I don't see anything?"

"The entrance is situated at an angle. The Magi modified all of the entrances to obscure them from view unless you are right on top of it. We're almost there. Let me just catch my breath."

"Me too. I'm not use to this kind of exercise. So how do we convince them to help us?"

"We have to let them think that we are looking to improve relations with our Euclidian friends. They are not likely to help us do anything that might hurt the Euclidian. Since they don't need money and have plenty of resources, we'll just have to enter into conversations with them to understand what might be of interest to them."

"Doesn't sound very hopeful, but considering the enormous potential we had better continue to pursue this possibility."

"Let's get going, she's probably waiting for us."

"If they don't have technology, how do they tell what time it is?"

"They use the level of a water pool which reacts to the position of their sun to determine the start of the day. They then split the day into one hundred equal periods using water clocks. At the beginning of each period they send a signal throughout the caves to synchronize the time. It's not real precise, but it works well enough for their culture."

"Yea, that is a bit crude. Are we there yet? I may need another break."

"As a matter of fact we are. Just look to your left behind this boulder," said Lephi pointing to the cave entrance.

"My goodness. I never would have noticed that."

"Let's go in and see if she is there."

***

"Lephi, how am I supposed to see in here?" Asked Commander Filo after entering a few meters into the cave.

"Put on the goggles I gave you. They will permit you to see in the dark. They project an invisible wave out that reflects off of objects and back into the goggles as images. We can't use light in here as it would hurt the Magis' eyes and keep them from interacting with us. They also have those special lenses I told you about."

"This is marvelous look at the bevy of activity all around us. It's as if we walked into some fairytale world."

Commander Filo took a moment to soak it all in. There were flying creatures of all sizes flying throughout the cave. Lizard-like creatures climbed the walls of the cave. Luminescent water bubbled up from odd places inside the cave adding a bit of light to dark areas. Water ran through the cavern carrying food that was eaten by the Magi. Some Magi could be seen tending to some small plots of land where they were growing different types of moss that were distributed and eaten by the villagers throughout the cave system.

"Are the Magi the large creatures darting about with the blue glowing eyes?"

"Yes."

"How do we possibly find your contact in this mass of similar bodies?"

"She said to wait here near the entrance of the cave near this blue gurgling water."

"Hello Lephi, who is your friend?" Asked a Magi appearing out of the darkness.

"Hi Yoyo, this is Commander Filo."

"Hello Commander Filo, I am Yoyo Snarky. I will be your guide during your visit."

"Pleased to meet you Yoyo. I'm surprised you speak Euclidian."

"I learned it meeting with the Euclidian from time to time."

"You are obviously pretty smart. I'm looking forward to visiting this home of yours," replied the commander looking at her in amazement. She was a few centimeters shorter than him and wore dark clothing that clung to her body. She had long, light hair tied behind her back. He could not see much of her face except her glowing eyes.

"It can be very difficult to navigate this place. I placed a glowing yellow ring around my sleeves to make it easier for you to keep track of me. If for some reason you lose sight of me just yell out my name and I will be sure to stop and find you."

"That's a great idea Yoyo," replied Lephi. The last time I was here you promised to introduce me to your chief so I could get her input on a business venture."

"And so I shall," responded Yoyo. Follow me and I will take you there now. Watch your heads. The height of some of the passageways may be a little low for you two."

The three started off on their journey, which turned out to be a long one. They went through several kilometers of passageways, caves and huge caverns. Magi people darted in and out between them as the two Alphas struggled to keep up with Yoyo.

"Yoyo, can we stop for a moment?" Asked Commander Filo.

"Certainly," she responded. "There are some flat rocks over there where we can rest."

"Thanks I certainly needed this," said Commander Filo sitting down.

"Where can we relieve ourselves?" Asked Lephi.

"Each cave has an area with a discharge pool. There is one just over there," Yoyo said pointing to a corner of the cave they had entered. "You relieve yourself in the pool and the enzymes in the pool neutralizes the waste materials. The pools are continually replenished to maintain their effectiveness. You can clean off your hands and other body parts in the pool as well."

"Thanks Yoyo. I'll be right back."

"I think I'll join you Lephi," stated Commander Filo getting up.

"I'll wait here for you two," said Yoyo.

"Lephi, do you think she is giving us the run around? We've been walking for over an hour so far."

"I don't see why she would. She has nothing to gain by doing so and nothing to fear from us."

"Okay, I'll be a bit more patient. It's not like we could find our way out if she decided to abandon us. I certainly don't remember the way out and our communications devices don't seem to be working inside of these caves."

The two finished relieving themselves and returned to their spots next to Yoyo.

"Yoyo, I had no idea this place was so enormous and beautiful, it would be interesting to be able to see it with your eyes," said Lephi.

"I have to say I enjoy all of the different lights, colors and sounds in the midst of the darkness," replied Yoyo. "Outside the caves one can certainly see everything more easily, but it doesn't have the same magic as this place."

"Yoyo, what is your main job here?" Asked Commander Filo.

"I mainly work as a liaison between my people and the Tammarians and Euclidian. I mostly just manage the exchange of goods between our people. The other part my time I work with the food producers to make variations of our grog. I enjoy the drink well enough, but I enjoy the effect it has on others much more. So I spend a lot of time trying to perfect my version of the grog recipe."

"Very interesting. What do you know about the Euclidian?"

"They are an extraterrestrial species that visits our planet from a planet far from here."

"How does a cave dweller know so much?"

"I'm curious and when they arrived I spent time getting to know them."

"How would you like to see the planet where they come from and many other places?"

"I like the idea, but you will have to speak to our chieftain about that."

"So let's go see her."

"No problem. I'll take you to her. We're just another few minutes away."

The three of them left their seats and proceeded through another series of caves and passageways until they entered into an enormous cavern that was illuminated by colorful, phosphorescent material that covered its walls. In the center was a large crystal palace. A large, arched entryway at the front of the building was full of traffic from visitors entering and leaving the facility.

"This is where our chieftain lives," started Yoyo. "I will introduce you to the chieftain and you can negotiate what you need with her."

"Does she speak Euclidian?" Asked Commander Filo.

"No she doesn't."

"How about Tammarian?"

"Of course."

"Good. Why are there so many people going in and out of the place?"

"Our chieftain has collected artifacts over the years and the place has sort of turned into a museum that attracts lots of visitors. Come with me and I'll take you inside so you can see the palace."

The three of them walked into the palace amazed by its grandeur. Commander Filo and Lephi were enthralled with all the items in the interior. There were wide walkways on both sides of the entrance separated by display areas in the middle and along each wall. Yoyo gave a brief description of each of the items as they passed by them.

"On this side are skeletons from various cave animals. On the other side are early tools that were found inside and outside the cave. Here we have early pottery and clothing made from various animal skins. I don't know the words the Euclidians use to name them. Here we have the various vegetation that you can find in our caves. Below each one is a plaque describing them. On the other side are different luminescent minerals and liquids that are used to light some of the areas in our caves including this palace."

"Why isn't the pool at the end lit up? Has the chemical worn out or something?" Asked Lephi.

"Not at all. Although it is plain water it contains a mineral that sparkles when you run your hands through it. Go ahead and try it," urged Yoyo.

The two Alphas ran their hands through the water and watched as sparkles appeared around their fingers.

"This is quite clever," stated Commander Filo.

"Watch this," said Yoyo grabbing a handful and throwing it into the air. The water hit the nearby wall and lit up like miniature fireworks. The water sparkled all along the wall and continued as it hit the floor. Soon afterwards it evaporated.

"My kids would have loved to have some of this to play with," said Commander Filo.

"I can get some to take home with you if you like," replied Yoyo.

"That won't be necessary. They died when the Euclidian attacked my planet."

"That's unfortunate. They don't seem like violent people to me, but I've only had very little interaction with them."

"Trust me, they are very violent people."

"I'll just have to take your word for it. Let's continue on," suggested Yoyo.

The three of them moved through a corridor into another open area that was less dimly lit.

"Here along the entire length of the wall on both sides is the robe, sandals, orb, necklace and headgear of our chieftains, dating back thousands of years. You can see how our culture and artistry has changed over the years."

"I'm surprised that nothing has been destroyed or stolen," stated Lephi.

"Somehow I think we have just been lucky. No one has ever tried to steal anything that I'm aware of. In general our people are very honest. Just in case, the Magi in the blue robes help to guard the place. To help preserve the items, we keep it dry in this chamber and coated the clothing with a preservative. After all that, the older items have still become a bit ragged. Let's continue up the stairs to the receiving area."

"How is this place so big when it seems so small from the outside?" Asked Commander Filo.

"It's built into the cave wall," responded Yoyo. "It goes on for a ways inside the cave wall and then comes out the other side into another large cavern."

"How clever!" Stated Commander Filo.

"Clever indeed!" Agreed Lephi.

They reached the top of the stairs and there was a small reception area with chairs across the walls and several Magi guarding a door carrying spears.

"This is the first time I believe I have seen weapons here," stated Commander Filo.

"Yes, this is the entry way to the chieftain's quarters. While we have never had attacks here in the past, we don't take any chances. No one else here carries weapons. We don't war with each other and outsiders would have a difficult time navigating the caves in order to get here so weapons aren't really necessary. In addition we have so many deterrents made from the minerals and liquids in the caves that an invading army would find it too costly to attack us to get what little we have in here. Hold on, I need to let the guards know that you are here to see the chieftain. I'll be right with you."

Yoyo spoke to one of the guards in her language and then disappeared through the door, returning a few minutes later.

"Our chieftain can meet with you in two periods. In the mean time I can take you through the rest of the palace on the lower floor and then out for some food. By the time we finish our chieftain should be ready to meet with you."

"That sounds like a grand idea," replied Lephi. "Go ahead and lead the way?"

Yoyo headed down the stairs while Commander Filo and Lephi followed after her.

***

Commander Filo and Lephi were surprised at how well they enjoyed the food and drink that Yoyo had found for them. She even treated them to her own brand of Tammarian grog, which they thoroughly enjoyed.

"Yoyo, you make the most amazing blend of Tammarian grog that I have ever tasted, and I have drunk a lot of them. I could drink yours all day," stated Lephi.

"Then you would be in no shape to see our chieftain," replied Yoyo. "We should probably be heading back." Yoyo lead them back to the reception area and disappeared through the door to the chieftain's chambers.

"She'll see us now," stated Yoyo sticking her head through the door.

The two Alphas entered the door behind Yoyo and were surprised to see the ornate nature of the hall. The floor was covered in tapestry. Chandeliers lit by luminescent balls hung from the ceiling. The walls were covered in various types of art. The baseboards were made of a shimmering, gold-colored material. At the end of the hall were large doors with more guards. The three proceeded through the door into the hall beyond it.

The hall was a large room full of activity. People everywhere were chatting with each other. There were village chiefs, elders and dignitaries carrying on their business. The three stood for a moment to take it all in. Yoyo described the people waiting to speak to the chieftain.

"The three people in the blue gowns are chiefs from the Wochowo region discussing distribution of their new fungus crops to the other regions. The two in the loin cloth are Tammarians looking to barter to get some Keegon fish from us. We served them some at a state dinner and they can't get enough of it. The group behind them are construction planners. They are planning an extension of our cave system."

"It sounds like they are arguing," stated Lephi."

"Yes, there are concerns that it would make it more difficult to communicate across the many villages we have today. There are also concerns that there may be problems removing the rock from the construction the long distances to any cave entrance. The interior minister is worried that the expansion will cause an increase in population that will place a strain on our resources. It takes time to develop additional sources of food, waste services and educate people about the new."

"Interesting problems," said Commander Filo rubbing his chin.

"Let's continue on. The chieftain's throne room is just through those doors," said Yoyo pointing just ahead of them.

The three of them stood at the door and waited to be announced. There was a Magi village chief just finishing up with the chieftain. He walked out and the chieftain's yeoman escorted them in.

"Yoyo," the chieftain stood smiling. "How have you been?"

"Chieftain Hilma I am just fine," replied Yoyo clasping her hands and bowing. "I am with two Alphas that wish to discuss a business proposition for you. This is Commander Filo and his aide Lieutenant Swantik."

The two clasped their hands and bowed as Yoyo introduced them.

"Greetings Chieftain Hilma," Commander Filo started removing his goggles, "I represent an Alpha delegation that is interested in having formal relations with the Magi people."

"To what end? You are free to communicate with us as you wish," replied the chieftain.

"We would like to setup more formal relations with your people by exchanging dignitaries. We could have someone representing our people stay here in your caves and one of your people could spend time with us on our ship and planet. There is so much we could learn from each other."

"We are generally against mingling with outsiders. I certainly would not wish for you to take our people away from this planet, which I believe is what you are proposing," she stated with a stern voice.

"You are quite right," Commander Filo stated bowing. "I feel there is so much we could share with your people. It would be much easier to express opportunities with someone who could spend time with our people. And likewise, your use of chemicals and minerals could be of great use to our people. Having your people embedded with our would be so productive for our engineers."

"Sounds interesting, but I'm concerned about the possible exploitation of our people and the negative influence that your culture could have on our culture. Yours is an advanced civilization. I understand the corruptive forces of technology and the greed that comes with that. Modernization does not come without a cost."

"I understand your hesitation chieftain. If I could have a second audience with you I believe I could demonstrate my sincerity and provide specific example of how the Alphas might be able to assist your people without disrupting the harmony of your culture."

"I am skeptical of your claim, but I am willing to hear you out. Yoyo, why don't you bring them back in two days and let's see what they have to present."

"Yes chieftain. Be well," Yoyo ended bowing and walking out.

Yoyo escorted Commander Filo and Nephi out to the cave entrance where she met them. "I'll see you here at the same time two days from now."

"Yoyo, I appreciate your assistance with getting us an audience with your chieftain. I feel it was a productive meeting. I look forward to seeing you again. Let me know if there is anything I can bring you the next time we meet," requested Commander Filo.

"I am happy to help out. I don't require anything at this time. I am merely doing my job," replied Yoyo. "I'll see you in two days. Goodbye," Yoyo ended disappearing into the cave entrance.

"Commander what do you have planned?" Asked Lephi, starting down the mountain.

"I'm not sure yet. Let me make a few calls and we will discuss it in the morning. I see the Magi as a great opportunity for us to enact our revenge on the Euclidians and I refuse to let it slip through our fingers without a fight. Let's get back to our ship and get some distance between us and this planet."

_That place is wondrous_ , thought Commander Filo to himself. _I didn't realize there was so much going on there. Those people have formal societies with villages full of huts, roads and communications, though primitive. But what don't they have? They don't seem to have a need for money, food or resources. However, their desire to expand could be the key to gaining their cooperation. I need to find a way to show them that the Alphas can assist them with their plans without interfering._

***

"So where is Yoyo?" Asked Commander Filo impatiently.

"I don't know," responded Lephi. "We are inside the cave at the exact same spot as we were before. Unfortunately the Magi are very liberal with meeting times. They only have a crude way of tracking time inside their caves and no one wears a time piece."

"So how do we know if she will show up? The chieftain could have changed her mind, she could be sick or dead or maybe she came earlier and decided we stood HER up! I don't like the casualness of these meetings."

"If she doesn't show up in an hour I can contact one of their other emissaries and try to setup another meeting. In the meantime, have a seat on one of the boulders and try to relax."

"It's bad enough I have to wear these goggles, I'm not going to sit on a hard rock. Anyway, that would be unprofessional. I will stand here until she arrives. If she doesn't arrive we keep trying with her or someone else."

Another few moments passed and Yoyo appeared in front of them.

"Hello Commander Filo and Lieutenant Swantik," greeted Yoyo.

"Hello Yoyo," Commander Filo replied clasping his hands and bowing.

"No need to be so formal. I'm not the chieftain."

"Still, I am happy to show you a little respect after the assistance you have given us. We have been here quite a while. You are late today."

"No, that is not possible. I came when I was ready. To come earlier would be a waste of our time."

"Forgive me, I expected you about the same time as last time."

"And that is when I arrived. So shall we go?"

Commander Filo not willing to belabor the point nodded and gestured for Yoyo to lead the way. Lephi simply looked at the commander shrugging his shoulders and Commander Filo looked back at him with a smirk.

Yoyo led the two Alphas to Chieftain Hilma's chamber where Commander Filo proceeded to present his case.

"Chieftain Hilma thanks for meeting with us again," started Commander Filo. "We continue to feel that there is much to be gained by an exchange of diplomats. As I mentioned previously, your use of chemicals, minerals and cave technology is of great interest to us. In return I believe that we could provide you some assistance with your expansion plans. You have a huge cave system that is difficult to navigate and communicate across. You also don't have precise timing devices. We could provide a wealth of technology to you that can address those difficulties."

"Commander, we are not interested in bringing your technology into our caves. We have survived thousands of years without it and I have no desire to have my people spending hours learning your devices and thus cripple them by having them rely on some foreign technology, subsequently extinguishing years of our culture."

"Point well taken Chieftain. I would not want to disrupt your way of life for the sake of diplomacy. There is also the matter of the expansion of your cave systems. We have technology that we could use to carve out the rock and remove it in no time. We could then transfer any items you need into the new space. The Alphas could manage all of the work so your people would not have to deal with using the technology."

"Those proposals sound a bit more acceptable, but I don't want life to become too easy for my people. Maybe we could look at a mixture of Alpha technology and Magi manpower. One thing we do not have is metal reinforcement to shore up our cave structures."

"That is something we would be glad to be able to assist you with. We also have a means for stimulating the growth of plants and animals. That could help you get started with providing additional food for your expanding population. Once we have increased the size of your food sources they should be able to sustain the continued growth needed by your people. As a sign of good faith I brought along a device that can be used to stimulate the egg laying capabilities of your sea life. I would be happy to demonstrate it on two isolated animals and you can verify that it does not harm the creatures in anyway."

"That would be a worthwhile experiment to test out. Yoyo, could you be so kind as to have one of our marine biologists setup an experiment before they end their visit with us?"

"Yes, chieftain," responded Yoyo.

"I believe we have enough information to start working out an agreement between our people. Commander, what were you thinking in the way of an exchange of representatives?"

"Since Lieutenant Swantik already has a relationship with your people I was hoping that he could be the Alpha Ambassador to the Magi people. There would be some additional people in his delegation to assist him with administrative work and assisting with any exchange of information. Likewise, I would like to propose that Yoyo be appointed as the Magi Ambassador to the Alpha people, with your permission of course Chieftain Hilma. I would also like to see others join her in order to improve our ability to exchange ideas."

Yoyo's mouth sprung open as she was taken aback by the proposal. She never saw herself becoming the ambassador to another planet. As ambassador to the Alphas her dream of travelling the stars would be realized. But could she be successful while still having fun?

"Are you still with us Yoyo?" asked Chieftain Hilma.

"Forgive me chieftain. I was just momentarily lost in my thoughts."

"So what do you think of the idea of being an ambassador Yoyo,"

"I would be honored and delighted," replied Yoyo bowing to her chieftain.

"You've done an excellent job working with the Tammarians and Euclidians. I think you are the perfect choice for the position. Do you think you can find some of our specialists that would like to join you?"

"Of course chieftain."

"How do you feel about the choice of Lieutenant Swantik as their ambassador?"

"I have had agreeable exchanges with him. He is patient and respectful, unlike Commander Filo." The commander looked away embarrassed. "I feel he will be a welcome partner for our people."

"Then it's settled. Yoyo, have our foreign minister meet with the Alpha counterpart to iron out an agreement between our people."

"Right away Chieftain Hilma. I appreciate your sponsorship," Yoyo ended bowing and moving away from the chieftain.

Commander Filo and Lephi bowed and followed Yoyo out from the chambers.

Within a few days the two sides completed their agreement. Yoyo and several of the Magi boarded a cloaked Alpha ship for a trip to Euclidia.
Chapter 3

Betty gets Kidnapped

Betty had a thrilling B&D session with Uan and was basking in its afterglow as she finished freshening up in her bathroom. After she walked into her bedroom she was surprised to find that Uan had gone. _I risk my life to save that jerk in a bar fight, bring him back to my place for a little B &D as a reward to myself for saving him and he disappears on me. He could have been kicked to death. The least he could do was indulge my fantasy. During the entire session he kept screaming about how he was going to kill me all the way up to his orgasm_.

After all that tough talk I can't believe he just vanished without saying a word. What happened to all that "I'm going to kill you," talk? I guess the sex was just too much for him. I should stop procrastinating and get to work.

Betty got dressed, jumped into her squad car and headed to her police precinct. She walked into the squad room to find everyone in the briefing room.

"Betty what are you doing out there?" Her captain shouted from the briefing room door. "The briefing has already started. Didn't you get my email?"

"Sorry captain, I was just getting some coffee. What's going on?" Asked Betty.

"Just grab your coffee and get in here."

"I'm not going to take up any more of your time," the police chief said finishing up. "I believe you all understand how gruesome these murders have been and the importance of finding the person or people that are responsible for this mess. Right now I would like to introduce you to Special Agent Trent McKee from the FBI forensics team."

"Hello everyone," Trent started. "Before joining the FBI I spent four years in Nam in special forces after leaving the sub fleet. After that I joined the FBI and worked in the DC Gang Violence Division before transferring to forensics after getting my doctorate. I have to tell you that in all that time I've never seen anything quite like this. Over the course of the past few weeks we've had several bodies come in with deep stab wounds to the chest, body parts missing and there were even a couple of decapitations. One body we found that was chopped up like a butcher making steaks from a cow carcass."

"At first we thought it was just random gang violence," Agent McKee continued. "However, some of the victims weren't gang members and the location where the bodies were found was too spread out. Initially we were unable to pinpoint any patterns that we could use to tie the killings together. The wounds were wide and deep, which means they were made by a spear-like weapon. It would be difficult to make those types of wounds using a knife. The angle of the penetration leads me to believe that the perpetrator was a short man between five foot five and five foot seven."

"We have only one possible lead that I'm aware of. Over at Louie's building where a couple of guys were killed, someone saw a man jump out of a third-story window carrying a man over his shoulder and then run off."

There was snickering from the officers in the room.

"This isn't a joke gentlemen," the police chief interrupted. "The third-floor window in Louie's building was broken out and glass could be found on the ground below the window. The witnesses were not junkies or drunks, but members of the neighborhood watch in the area. They went on to say that the suspect wore a hood, dark wrap-around shades and had some sort of tiger markings on his face."

When Betty heard that she gasped and began to feel faint. _Was that the guy I slept with just hours earlier? He did have a spear on him._

"Please continue Agent McKee."

"I decided to test one of the wounds for metal fragments to see what if anything could be deduced about the weapon that was used in the different murders. Let me tell you I was caught totally off guard when I determined that the minute fragments that I took from the first wound were unidentifiable. They were certainly metal, but nothing anyone had ever seen before. I sent the fragments to several labs with the same conclusion. It's as if our perpetrator is using a weapon that was not made on this planet."

"Are you saying that the murderer is an alien?" One of the officers shouted.

"I'm just saying that the metal from the weapon cannot be identified. This person is the FBI's top priority and it should be yours as well. He's killed nine people so far that we know of and the unidentified metal fragments were found in each one of them."

"Okay, that's it," the chief jumped in. "Get out there and chase down some leads for me ladies and gentlemen."

Betty walked out of the briefing room holding her mouth and sat at her desk in a daze.

"Betty, you okay?" A passing officer asked.

"Yea Mack. I'm just distracted. Just a bad date last night that I can't get out of my head," Betty responded.

"It's probably due to those bad bars you hang out in."

"You're probably right Mack."

_Little does he know how right he was,_ Betty thought.

Betty reviewed her current case load, made a few calls, then set off to find Uan.

***

Li Xiao was fascinated with the gift that Cobalt had given her. She had finally forgiven him for causing her body to be banged up figuring that the teleportation mechanism must have screwed up somehow causing her body to be slammed against her shower floor.

Visiting her family was fun, but it also proved to be dangerous. She could have killed herself or a family member. She spent the rest of the day practicing using the device to beam herself around her apartment. She learned to set and remove waypoints for locations. She learned to use the memory list to jump from place to place quickly. She knew she could take objects with her, but she did not know if she could take a live animal or human with her.

Li Xiao learned that if an object is tied down that the rope would be severed at a specific distance from her body. _What if it were a human chained to a wall or a large human or two humans? How would the severing mechanism work?_ She thought.

Li Xiao decided to test transporting animals starting with something small. She knew her neighbors had a few goldfish in a bowl so she decided to transport them to her apartment and back. She used the transport device to locate their fishbowl, verified that the apartment was empty and pressed the transport button. Instantly she was standing in front of the fishbowl. She picked up the bowl and transported it back to her apartment. She checked the fishbowl and all the fish were still there and alive. Just then she heard a noise from next door. She used her device and noticed that her neighbors had suddenly returned. The husband walked into the living room while his wife went into the kitchen.

"Honey, the fish are gone, said the husband going toward the kitchen. "Do you think one of the kids came by to get them? You would think they would tell us that they were going to pick them up. It's not likely that someone broke into our place just to take the fish and leave our big flat-screen TV. That would be strange."

Li Xiao noticed the husband leave the room and quickly popped back over, replaced the bowl and popped back to her place as the couple was walking into the living room.

"Are those the fish that are missing dear?" Asked the wife.

The husband looked over in shock. "I swear to you they were gone."

"Go take your pills and lay down honey. I think it's time for your nap."

"I don't need a nap. Those fish were gone I tell you!"

"You go get your jammies and I'll get the Geritol."

Li Xiao laughed listening to the conversation happy that they did not suspect her.

***

Betty decided to chase down the only lead she knew, Louie's place. She drove her squad car over to see the usual guys out front guarding the entrance.

"Hey fellas, how's it going?" Asked Betty.

"Yo Betty. You know. Just getting some air," responded one of the men guarding the entrance.

"I heard you had a little excitement here the other day. Some tiger-faced guy was harassing Louie," she said fishing.

"Yea, that crazy fucker came over here with a friend of his looking for some kid."

"What kid?"

"Some kid that was outside Joey's Diner when that zombie Bookhead showed up. I guess you heard about that?" He said chuckling.

"Sure, but I thought that was some sort of joke. What did he want with the kid?"

"Who knows. Can't be no good. He's not a warm and fuzzy kind of guy if you know what I mean. He cut up a few of our guys real bad."

"Yea, I know what you mean. Where do you think I could find him?"

"Not sure. I heard he hangs out at Bo Sam's place. He might even be the one that offed him."

"I heard about that. I'll see what I can find out over there."

"Okay, but watch out for yourself. They have a tendency to rough up cops over there. We cool right?

"Sure. Just be subtle about your shit and I'll keep the squad off your back."

"For shizzle Betty."

"Okay, later fellas."

Betty got back in her black and white and headed over to Bo Sam's place. She parked her car down the street and took a position just across the street behind a tree to monitor the building.

_This must be where he's staying. There's his friend right there heading in._ Betty said of Calvin. _Uan has to be inside somewhere. I'd better call for backup_ , Betty said to herself reaching for her radio.

"The only backup you're gonna get is your back up against a wall," said Little Randy stepping in front of her. "You think cause you a cop you got juice around here? Think again. Ain't you that bitch the Italians are pissed at?"

"Those goombas are always pissed at somebody. Why do you give a damn?" Questioned Betty worried about her current predicament.

"Cause I want to keep them off my ass and out of my territory. Plus they will probably toss me a little change to take you over to them."

"How about you introduce me to the guy across the street and I give you a pass on this little operation you got going on here?"

"How about you shut the fuck up and I send you beddy bye?" Little Randy nods and an associate of his behind her knocks her out.

Betty woke up some time later tied to a chair with a horrible headache. She was in a fruit cellar in a damp basement. There was a single light overhead.

"Betty, you're still alive," said a man in the shadow of the room. "Those knuckleheads brought you in a bit busted up. I thought we were going to have to bury you without the chance to let you know how much we appreciated all the attention you've given us in the past."

"Is that Antonio? I hope the pen wasn't too hard on you? If you can't do the time don't do the crime, right?"

Antonio stepped out of the shadow into the light where Betty could see him.

"That's absolutely right officer Betty. And now it's your turn to do some time for the crime you have perpetrated on me and my family," said Antonio.

"Antonio, before we get started. Do you think I could get a bathroom break? They even give you those in prison right?"

"Betty, don't expect any breaks tonight!" Said a new voice entering the room.

"Hello Luciano, or should I just call you Lucy," Betty replied with a quiver in her voice.

Luciano leaned forward towards Betty and slapped her across the face knocking her and the chair to the floor.

"Pick her up!" Luciano yelled at Antonio. "I heard you like to make men your bitch. You better believe that won't be happening here. This time you're my bitch. This time you're the one getting slapped. How does it feel? Trust me you are getting off a lot easier than a lot of my guys that you put in prison. Some are spending years rotting in a small cell having to use the bathroom in plain view. The only bathroom break you'll be getting is in your pants."

Luciano slapped her again sending her once again to the floor. When Antonio lifted her back up her chair was wet.

"That didn't take long sweetheart. Did you enjoy pissing your pants?"

"Not as much as I would enjoy pissing on you," Betty responded with a sneer.

"Well that's never going to happen little lady. You recognize this?" Asked Luciano showing her an old pocket knife.

"It looks like the pocket knife I pulled off your brother."

"That's right. You pulled it off him when you arrested him a couple of years back for trafficking. They sent it to me with the rest of his stuff after he died in prison."

"Sorry to hear that."

"Not yet you aren't. But, you will be. He wanted you to have it so here it is," said Luciano opening the knife up. He placed it into his right hand and stabbed it into her left thigh.

"Arghhh. You bastard!" Betty screamed.

She kicked and flailed in her chair, but her actions were just ignored.

"Antonio, I want you to take her to the Wendy's on Jewella just south of I20 in Shreveport. I'm going to let the Cajuns take care of her where no one will hear from her again. Tell them to take their time with her. I want her to suffer for 642 days just like my brother did in prison. For now I don't want her hurt any more than she already has been until she is handed over to the Cajuns."

"Sure boss."

"Keep her in the chair. Place her in the back of the SUV and take her to our airfield. Our plane should be prepped and waiting to take you to Shreveport. There'll be another SUV waiting for you at the other end. Use it to rendezvous with Pierre at the Wendy's. Just spend the night and gamble or whatever. The plane will bring you back in the morning. When you get back I have another job for you."

"Will do boss. Let's go little lady," stated Antonio dragging Betty into the garage and placing her into the back of the SUV.

"I guess you're not going to give me a bathroom break either?" Betty asked Antonio.

"Sure. You can take as many as you like as long as you take them from that chair," Antonio chuckled. He closed the hatch on the SUV and drove off towards the airfield. Three hours later Antonio was in a similar SUV in Shreveport driving towards the Wendy's on Jewella. Pierre was sitting behind the Wendy's in a delivery truck.

"You must be Pierre?" Antonio asked the man in the truck.

"Yes, I believe you have a package for me from Luciano," replied Pierre.

"Yes, it's in the back of the SUV. She can be a bit feisty. I slapped her across the face and assured her if she screamed again like she did at the airport I would tape her mouth shut after I filled it full of dirt," Antonio smiled.

The two men pulled Betty out of the SUV and placed her in the back of Pierre's truck.

"Be sure to tell Luciano that Boudreau sends his regards," stated Pierre.

"I certainly will," replied Antonio. "Is she going to be okay in the back of your truck?"

"Don't worry. I secured her chair to the side of the truck so she won't slide around and hurt her little head."

"Excuse me sir," interrupted Betty. "Is there any way that I can please get a bathroom break? I'd be happy to let you watch."

"Go ahead," replied Pierre. "I'm watching."

"Really?!" Replied Betty. "You can't just let me drop my pants for five minutes."

"Sounds like a good idea. Would you also like me to leave the light on back here and get you a CD player to listen to on the trip?"

"Why is it that all you hoodlums think you're comedians?"

"My goodness, I think I just got a promotion," laughed Pierre closing the door to the truck.

Pierre jumped into the truck and drove off towards Natchitoches. Pierre later arrived at a Piggly Wiggly where Boudreau and his associate Kevin, were waiting for him in the parking lot.

"Hey Pierre, what you got for me?" Greeted Boudreau.

"A pretty little cop lady to keep you warm at night. She's tied to a chair inside.

Along the way, Betty was able to lean down in the chair and pull the knife from her leg using her mouth. She leaned her head back and used her lips and tongue to move the blade of the knife towards her mouth. She twisted her head to the side and dropped the knife into the darkness. Luckily she was able to shift around and catch it with her hands. She used the knife to cut herself loose from the ropes that bound her wrists. She went into the front corner of the truck and took her long needed bathroom break. She placed her knife into her back pocket, untied the chair from the side of the truck and sat down by the rear of the truck waiting for the door to open.

Pierre, unaware that Betty had freed herself, opened the door to the delivery truck to show his gift. The doors slammed open and Betty dived at Pierre's chest with the chair braced in front of her. Pierre fell backwards hitting his head on the payment, knocking himself out.

Betty noticed a man on her right on the way down. Once she landed on top of Pierre, she twisted her body and kicked Kevin's ankles tripping him to the ground.

She jumped to her feet and went to run but was stopped in her tracks when Boudreau grabbed her by the ponytail. She turned to strike him, but curled up with pain and fell to the ground after Boudreau struck her in the abdomen with a Taser. Boudreau kicked at Pierre and Kevin, who were still lying on the ground.

"Get up you two idiots. Tie her up and throw in the back seat of my SUV. And try not to get beat-up this time."

After getting her in the back of the SUV, Pierre drove off in his truck and Boudreau drove off with Kevin towards his place in Negreet. Boudreau lived in a big white columned house on a small island in the middle of the bayou just past the Collier Memorial Park. It was only accessible via a small makeshift bridge that lead to Negreet's main road. The island was surrounded by a strong chain-link fence to keep the gators from wandering around the property.

After arriving on the island, Boudreau and Kevin dragged Betty into his house and threw her on the bed of one of his guest rooms.

"Why don't you lay there and relax a bit little lady, said Boudreau, "I'll send a few of my girls up in a bit to get you presentable for a late night visit. I'm going to enjoy having you around the place. Something about having a cop as my sex slave really turns me on. You must have pissed those Italians off something fierce for them to pay me to take you off their hands with the stipulation that I keep you alive for at least 642 days and then I get another stack of cash. Go figure!"

"Kevin, let's go get some grub and afterwards we can come back and have some fun with our private little police force," Boudreau laughed closing the door and locking the door from the outside.

"You betcha," replied Kevin slapping him on the back.
Chapter 4

Cobalt Returns

Li Xiao was perplexed about what had happened to her. Why did Cobalt shoot her? How did she arrive in her shower all broken up? What was the device that Cobalt left her? What did he want her to do with it? She had to see Cobalt and get him to answer her questions. If nothing else she wanted to see him because she truly missed him.

She theorized that if her device permitted her see places across the planet, Cobalt must be able to see her somehow. She knew that he must have been able to watch her to know so much about her life when he recruited her. Maybe she was being naïve, but she felt that Cobalt had feelings for her. Either way, there were too many unanswered questions and she needed to hear from him. Li Xiao decided that if he was checking in on her that he would see messages that she left for him so she started making signs and placed them all over the apartment stating, _Cobalt contact me!_ She even placed one on the front and back of her shirt.

For two days she walked around with the signs on the front and back of her clothes, receiving odd stares from people. At the end of the second day she was sitting in her living room watching the movie _Avatar,_ wondering if a planet like that really existed. Suddenly Cobalt appeared before her blocking the television. She immediately leaped to her feet and hugged Cobalt. Cobalt hugged her back enjoying her warm embrace and the smell of her hair in his nostrils.

"Cobalt you don't know what I've been through. I missed you so much. At first I thought you had imprisoned me and tried to kill me. I later realized it must have been a transporter malfunction. I guess even in advanced societies there must be bugs in equipment or inept operators. Then I started to wonder why you shot me and didn't just send me to your transporter room. Was I knocked out for a while and then sent home?"

Cobalt laughed releasing Xiao from his embrace. "I thought women talking a lot, was just a Majorellen phenomenon. Xiao, try to calm down and let me know what's going on with you. I'm not sure what you are talking about, but I'm glad to see you again. So tell me, what can I do for you? I have to apologize up front and let you know that I cannot stay with you very long."

Li Xiao took Cobalt's hand and led him towards the couch. She sat down and placed her feet up on the couch. She patted the spot next to her signaling for Cobalt to sit next to her. He sat down next to her and placed his arm around her neck. He placed his right index finger under her chin, lifted her head and kissed her softly on her lips.

"Now tell me what's on your mind Xiao," Cobalt prompted.

"Be honest Cobalt. What happened after you shot me?"

"I never shot you darling. The device I was holding was not a weapon, but a transport device. I used it to send you into the transportation system directly from my room and the operators were supposed to place you safely back in your room. They screwed up and released you above your shower and they forgot to compensate for the acceleration vector. The same for the drink and the bag of money. Luckily the transport device I gave you was in the bag of money."

"Okay, so that explains how my body got so banged up."

"I was really saddened by what had happened to you. I wanted to come to your aid, but our captain is not sympathetic to our emotional needs and does not like us leaving the ship except for planned leave."

"So you have been watching me the whole time since I left your ship?"

"Not every waking moment. Just here and there. I was hoping to see you again and wanted to be sure you were safe. The invasion of Earth is eminent. The device can help keep you safe, and may help you save others. You can make a difference on this planet. Individuals often underestimate the impact they can have on the world around them."

"When is the invasion supposed to happen? How many people will be impacted? Why would you bother giving me money and this device if our world is going to be ripped apart soon?"

"Don't worry about the invasion. They won't destroy the planet and I promise to keep you safe. Focus on the device and how you can use it as a tool to make the next evolution of your planet a great one."

"I don't know why you have so much faith in me. I don't think I'm worthy of your praise or trust. However, I will listen to your counsel and learn to use the device. While I know a lot about it there is more I could learn. So please teach me everything you know about the device."

"Okay, but we need to be quick. Starting at the top right is the power button. You won't need to worry about the device ever running out of power. It has a fifty year power source. You will want to turn it off when you are not using it to avoid accidentally activating a feature by hitting one of the buttons. A momentary push of the button disables all the buttons. If you hold the power button and press a button sequence the device will shut down and you will need to hold the power button down and press the same sequence to get the device to come on again. That will prevent someone else from trying to use it. Are you with me so far?"

"Yes, keep going."

"You seemed to have learned how to use your fingers on the screen, but you can perform the same actions and more by holding your fingers above the screen moving your hand in the way you want the monitoring device to move. Hold your hand over the screen with your fingers pointing at it. Now move your hand in and out over and notice the viewing position changes based on the direction you are viewing. To zoom in and out spread your fingers and hold them or squeeze and hold them. Twisting your fingers to the left or right will cause the viewing angle to spin to the left or right. As you know positioning your hand sideways and spinning it will spin the camera angle based on the orientation of your hand to the viewing angle. Wiping your hand across the screen will move the viewing position in the same direction as your hand. Still with me?"

"Yes."

"The button at the top permits you to listen in on conversations. The top left button is a timer. Pressing it displays a list of times on the screen. The first one is blank, which disables the timer. The next entry represents about two seconds using Euclidian timing. Each entry after that is the double the previous. Once you select a time you will always return from a transport within that amount of time. For example, if you select the third entry and transport to your parent's house you will return to your starting point after 4 seconds. If you press the timer button while the timer is counting down it will disable the countdown. The next time you transport somewhere the timer will countdown again."

"Why would I want to use the timer?"

"Say you wanted to go somewhere and pick up something and return, but your hands would be too full to operate the device. That way you could return without having to pushing any buttons."

"Got it."

"The button on the left is used to target people or items that you want to track. You can track as many targets as you like. Pressing the button over the target selects it. Pressing the button again deselects it. Pressing the button on the right cycles through the targets. The button on the bottom left is used to select a destination. You can select as many destinations as you like. Pressing the lower right button will cycle between all of your stored destinations. Pressing the lower left button when a destination comes up will deselect the destination. And of course, pressing the bar at the bottom transports you to the destination on the screen. You need to be careful about how high up you are because you can easily kill yourself. Pressing and holding the transport button will return you to your last transport location."

"Wow that's a lot to remember."

"I suggest you practice a lot before starting any missions. I need to get back to the ship now."

"What missions? What am I supposed to do?"

"I have confidence that you will figure it out. You wanted to make a difference for your people. Now you can."

"No time for a little loving?"

"Not this time. Hopefully next time though, which should be very soon."

And without warning he vanished and she fell from his arms onto the couch.

***

Li Xiao was sitting in her living room Sunday morning watching the CNN Sunday program, _Fareed Zakaria GPS_ when a report caught her attention.

"Chinese basketball legend Yao Ming, while giving a speech in his hometown of Shanghai, was arrested for speaking out on the jailing of dissidents in the country. Yao Ming had long been an opponent of the government's continued imprisonment and detainment of people who criticized the government. Now he himself had become a victim of this practice. Because of the subsequent public outrage, Yao Ming had been hidden away in an undisclosed location leading to fears about his health or the possibility of being freed anytime soon."

The imprisonment of Yao Ming outraged Li Xiao. Though she considered herself a patriot, she disagreed with the government's crackdown on protestors. Her patriotism is why she agreed to work with the Chinese agent, who she later found out was an alien. She believed she was helping China protect itself from being attacked by nuclear weapons. She soon discovered that the aliens were looking to locate all of the Earth's nuclear material for themselves. While her patriotism was misplaced she was still considered herself a patriot. Now maybe she had a chance to help her people even if the world was about to end.

Li Xiao kept reflecting back on her short reunion with Cobalt and his parting words. She also thought of her personal commitment to make a difference for her people. Was it her mission to free Chinese dissidents? She didn't know, but she couldn't sit idly by and let her countrymen be abused. So she decided she would use the device that Cobalt gave her and start freeing dissidents herself. However, she was afraid that if she went off on her mission unmasked, she would be quickly identified and tracked down before she could have a significant impact. To protect her identity she decided to take on the persona of the Chinese Goddess Guan-Yin, disguising her face with a mask.
Chapter 5

Filo & Yoyo at Bordelle Bar

During the trip to Euclidia, Commander Filo indoctrinated Yoyo in Alpha culture and history. He showed her the systems on his ship, but indicated that his plan was to work on a Euclidian ship because it would help with improving the relationship between the Alphas and Euclidians.

Instead of teaching her the Alpha language he focused on improving her Euclidian, which he thought would be more useful for what he had planned for her.

"Yoyo, let's speak in Euclidian for the remainder of your trip, if that's okay with you?"

"Yes Commander Filo. That would be very helpful for me if we are going to spend any time on Euclidia and its ships."

"Wonderful. I am proud that you are dedicating yourself to your new role. I will be sending your associates except for two of them to other Alpha ships to meet with my counterparts on those ships. The other two will join us on Euclidia."

"When will we be visiting your home planet?"

"We will visit the new Alpha home planet later. Our old one was destroyed by the Euclidian due to a misunderstanding between our people. I'm hoping to address that matter in the near future. For now, I want you all to focus on learning their language and customs. Our visit to their planet will help you with the transition. There are a few places we can visit that will help immerse all of you in their culture. I'll find us a place first so we will have somewhere to live while we are there."

"There won't be a problem with us being on their planet?"

"No, they get new people there all the time. We will need to get you registered and assigned UCDs though. That will cost a few credits, but shouldn't take much time. I'm sure it will be surprising for them to find out that your race of people are starting to visit their planet."

"Why would they care?"

"They try to keep track of those things and are probably surprised that they have been on your planet for several years and just ran across you."

"I hope that won't cause a problem for my people. We don't like a lot of attention."

"You should be fine. The Euclidian are fine with leaving people to themselves once they find out that they are not a danger to them."

"That's comforting. I look forward to seeing what life is like on another planet."

"You will find out very soon Yoyo. I promise you that you are in for quite an experience.

***

The Alpha ship, with Commander Filo, entered into orbit above the planet Euclidia. The Magi Yoyo Snarky, the newly assigned ambassador from the planet Tammaria, was at the commander's side. She was wearing a long, dark, hooded robe to protect her skin from the sun and goggles over her eyes as they were sensitive to bright light. Commander Filo convinced her to come to Euclidia to help him improve relations between the Alphas and Euclidian. Little did she know that he had a more sinister plan in place for her.

Jesmino, Yoyo's newly assigned assistant, accompanied the two of them. Jesmino was a mineral scientist. She developed several of the mineral-based techniques used by the Magi. Commander Filo found three small apartments for them in a part of town that was more or less accepting of lodgers from the planet Alpha. He got them plugged into the government system and assigned each a UCD. That thrilled Yoyo beyond belief.

"Don't you just love this UCD they gave us Jesmino?"

"It's not a bad device. It is certainly better than anything we have in the cave," replied Jesmino."

"What do you mean it's not bad? It's amazing. Everything I want to know is right here. It can tell me where I am, about the people around me and show me video of faraway places. I can even talk to it as if it were human."

"Yes, it has abilities, but it has no intelligence."

"Whatever you say Jesmino. Let's take a walk around."

Yoyo and Jesmino decided to take a walk through their neighborhood to get to know their surroundings and test out their new devices. The city of Occum was enormous and the capital city for the planet Euclidia. It contained over seventy-five million inhabitants. Over eleven million of the people were from dozens of other planets that had formed relationships with the Euclidian government.

The neighborhood where they lived had people from many planets. Typically individuals with few resources. The streets were bordered on both sides by shops selling goods from Euclidia as well as other planets. There was a multitude of different music, smells and clothing. On top of the shops were apartments like the ones that Commander Filo, Yoyo and Jesmino lived in. Visiting the shops Yoyo learned that she needed credits to purchase things. She desperately wanted to learn how to earn credits.

"Jesmino, isn't this place the greatest?" Asked Yoyo excitedly."

"It's not bad."

"Again with the 'not bad' comment. What do you mean it's not bad? I've never seen so many people or things from so many faraway places. There are so many worlds with so many cultures that I've never heard of. So many ways of communicating and procreating. And so much technology that helps people travel from place to place."

"Why does that sound so strange? Non-organic devices are capable of many things beyond the abilities of organic life forms. Think about having limitless memory, or lifespan, or being able to connect life anywhere at a subatomic level. Once you can connect with a quark you can be anywhere in the known universe all at once. Though you have to be careful to remember your origin. Infinite destinations can take infinite time to research."

"What the hell are you talking about? Where did you learn all of that stuff?"

"Oh! I was just reading up on subatomic theory on this new device."

"Already?! And because you have nothing else to learn I guess? I want you studying the Euclidian. Who are they, what are they passionate about and how might they benefit from our mineral expertise. I want to see if we can leverage that to build a relationship with them and help improve the relations between the Alphas and the Euclidian."

"Understood ambassador."

"Just call me Yoyo for now. If we get into some formal meetings maybe you can use my title. I want you to spend more time perfecting their language and then making friends with someone in the government. I know that may take some time, but I'm sure we will have plenty of that. I'll have further information about what we need to do once I've spent more time with Commander Filo. Speaking of which, I am supposed to meet him in a few minutes to go to some bar. Who is that?!" Stated Yoyo pointing at a robed figure.

Yoyo chased after the figure who was hurrying by on a cross-street. She caught up with the person and grabbing at the person's robe. The person stopped and turned around, startling Yoyo who was staring in the face of a male Magi.

"What are you doing here? I live here. Who are you?"

"I'm Yoyo. I work as a liaison for the chieftain. And you."

"I'm Belo. I came here with a Euclidian ship about two months ago. I was meeting with some Tammarians on the eastside of Mount Chupachy when they just showed up. I gave them some grog in return for one of the snacks they were eating and the relationship sort of blossomed from there. I eventually convinced them to let me board their ship with them."

"I didn't even know we had caves out that far. Are there others here?"

"Yea, the caves have been expanding like crazy. I can't keep up with them anymore. I have seen a few more of us around."

"Do the Euclidians know about our persuasion abilities?"

"No, not at all. We felt it would be better to keep that to ourselves for now."

"I'm so glad of that. How do I find the rest of the people from our caves?"

"Look I gotta run. I'm a techno slinger at the Occum Dance Club271 a few blocks from here. Why don't you come by later and I can tell you more," Belo ended running off.

"Did you see that Jesmino? There are more of us here."

"Yes, I don't find that so surprising. I just finished learning Euclidian now I will go off and try to make the appropriate Euclidian contact you asked for."

"Really?! You are a strange one Jesmino. I'll see you back at your place tonight. I'm going to go find Commander Filo."

"Tonight it is," replied Jesmino disappearing into the crowd of people.

_I've got to learn more about Belo,_ Yoyo thought. _Maybe he could teach me to be a techno slinger so I can earn some credits._

***

Commander Filo walked into the Bordelle Bar on the outskirts of Occum. This bar was the favorite of resource ship officers. Commander Filo was looking for one person in particular, the XO of the _Andrea_. He was key to his revenge plot against one of the four Euclidians who was the captain of one of the four ships that destroyed his planet. The one he blames for instigating the attack in the first place. Captain Chaell Shisal!

Commander Filo and Yoyo took a seat in a booth that gave them full view of the bar. Commander Filo wanted to make sure he saw everyone coming and going from the establishment.

"Two Tammarian Grogs," Commander Filo demanded from the server. "And a bowl of fresh Gordon creatures. I don't want any of them to look like they're on their last leg either."

"Right away sir," stated the server hurrying off.

"You mean to tell me that they serve our grog in an establishment like this so far away from my planet," asked Yoyo.

"Yes, you can get it almost anywhere these days. The stuff is too good not to have plenty of it on supply."

"So is one of your contacts here?"

"No, not yet, but it's still early. I am hoping that one of them will arrive soon. The place gets plenty of traffic, especially around this time of day and I wanted to make sure that we got a seat."

"What makes this place so popular?"

"The dancers! See that stage over there with the poles?"

"Yes."

"It's going to be full of naked women, men and hermaphrodites from every imaginable species. They dance and grind and wiggle around with their sexy gyrations while clients throw money at them. They are very talented performers."

"You can see nudity all the time here and on our ship. Why is seeing nudity here so interesting?"

"There is a big difference between nudity and sensual performances. They move their bodies in provocative ways, touching themselves and exposing their genitalia in all their glory. The clients love it for scientific and erotic reasons and are happy to pay money to the performers."

"Wow, that sounds bizarre. Why would they do that?"

"Who? The performers or the clients?"

"Both!"

"The performers dance for the money and the fame they could obtain. The customers are willing to pay to see them dance because they get to learn about the anatomies of different species or just to feed their sexual beast!"

"Would they let me perform here?"

"I would think not. You can't just go up there and walk around naked. You have to perform and look sexy while you are doing it. Living in a cave all your life you probably didn't have much experience dancing naked. Those goggles and big robe you wear all the time won't help your cause either. Of course, you could use your abilities to make the clients give you all their money without even dancing. However, if the Euclidian government knew about your abilities you would probably be imprisoned or killed."

"There is so much I don't know about this place. I need to spend more time getting to know it."

"What do you expect? You've been living in a cave your whole life."

"Here are your drinks and food gentlemen," said the server walking up with a tray.

"If you don't mind, I'm a woman," piped up Yoyo.

"Forgive my mistake. I was unaware," replied the server.

"What are those creatures walking around in the bowl?" Asked Yoyo startled.

"Those are Gordon creatures. To eat them you take one out of the bowl and place it on the table. When it tries to run you stun it with your fist then pop it in your mouth. When you bite into one it makes a high pitched squeaking sound, stiffens and secretes a fluid that is very exhilarating. That only happens if you eat them alive. You have to wonder why nature would do that to a creature. Being eaten alive has to be a horrible way to go."

"Thanks for the graphic explanation. I think I will pass on that delicacy. I don't need the bad karma. Maybe I'll just get a vegetarian dish."

"Sure, whatever you like. But that will have to wait. One of my possible business partners has appeared. See the man with the uniform that just sat down by the stage?"

"Yes, I see him."

"That's one of the ones that I want to give me an audience. I'm going to pay one of the ladies to give him a free visit to the Laldexian Room and then you can do your thing. Stay here. I'll be right back."

"It's setup," said Commander Filo returning. "We'll just wait until he leaves and then join him in the Laldexian Room."

"What happens in there?" Yoyo asked.

"That's where people go to get special acts performed for them."

"Like what?"

"You know, private dances, massages, hand jobs and the like."

"Oh, those kind of acts."

"There he goes. Let's get in there before he orders anything extra from the menu."

Commander Filo and Yoyo followed the Euclidian officer into the Laldexian room, tipping the server on the way in and asking for privacy.

"Hello captain. I am Commander Filo and this is my associate Yoyo from Tammaria. May we join you?"

"Beat it Alpha. I'm here for a little fun, not to have my appetite spoiled by the looks of you."

"I'm only here to improve our relations. Tell him Yoyo."

Yoyo took off her goggles and let her glowing eyes fall on the captain's. "Relax captain, we are your friends. Don't I have friendly eyes?"

"Yes you do," replied the captain.

"I want you to feel comfortable with us. We are your friends. You would like to be friends with us right?"

"Yes I would."

"Good. Commander Filo and I are here to ensure you have a good time with the hope that we can improve the relations between the Alphas and Euclidians. Commander Filo has a proposal that he wants to present to you if that's okay with you?"

"Yes, of course. I'd love to hear it," the captain replied.

"I'm going to leave you two to talk. Listen to everything he has to say and submit to everything he asks of you."

"I would be happy to Yoyo."

"Great, I will head back to the bar and wait on you in the booth commander."

"I appreciate your help connecting us Yoyo," said Commander Filo. I'll join you in a few minutes.

Commander Filo waited for Yoyo to leave the room and then focused his attention on the captain. "You are Captain Yondel from the Euclidian ship _Tez_ right?"

"Yes I am."

"You participated in the attack on the Alpha home planet that led to its destruction, didn't you?"

"I can proudly say that I did."

"Wonderful. I want you to enjoy your time here in the Laldexian Room. Tonight when you return home I want you to get some rope and a container of lotion and then stand on a chair. Attach one end of the rope to something sturdy above your head and attach the other end around your neck in a knot that will not be easy to loosen once tightened. Are you with me so far captain?" Commander Filo asked smiling.

"Yes I am."

"Next I want you to drop your pants and shorts around your ankles, place some of the lotion in your hand and rub it on your crotch. Drop the container to the floor and then kick the chair from underneath you. The noose will tighten around your neck, but don't fight it. Embrace the pain. Enjoy the moment as I will be thinking of you tonight."

"I will do as you requested."

"Great. Now forget you saw me or my associate Yoyo tonight. The server will be in soon to take care of you."

Commander Filo walked out of the Laldexian Room smiling. He contacted the server to make sure the captain got all the attention he needed, and then joined Yoyo back in their booth.

"How did everything go?" Asked Yoyo.

"I think it went quite well. I'll know for sure in the morning. One down three to go."

"What's that?"

"Engagements Yoyo. Merely engagements," Commander Filo replied rubbing his hands together and smiling wryly.
Chapter 6

Finding Betty

Betty was enjoying resting on the bed after her horrible ordeal in transit to Boudreau's place. However, now was not the time to become complacent. She decided to remove the knife from her pants back pocket and place it under her pillow. Though her hands were tied behind her, she was able to wiggle around and push the knife under one of the bed's pillows. She then laid her head on a pillow and tried to get some needed sleep. After four hours in the back of two SUVs, a plane, truck and sedan she was happy to get some needed shuteye.

As Betty slept she dreamt of better times when she first became a police officer. She was full of hope and the belief that she could make a difference in the city of DC. While she put several bad guys away, many got away. Some criminals got off due to legal technicalities, some from bribes and others due to witnesses that were found dead.

The next moment she was in her grandmother's backyard eating a small bowl of strawberries with cream. She always loved to hold the bowl over her head and let the cream drip into her mouth.

"Having fun Betty?"

"Yes, grandma. I love the strawberries. And the cream is so creamy."

"What you going to do today little girl?"

"I'm going to save the whirl," Betty replied to smiling up at her grandmother.

Next, Betty was on a horse riding fast after some bad guys. Then she was wearing armor and carrying a lance. The dreaded Blue Beard was coming at her from the opposite direction. She leaned forward, aiming her lance at his chest. Just at the tip was about to hit her opponent she fell from her horse and out of an airplane behind several parachutists. Their chutes opened revealing brightly colored cloth that filled the sky. She floated down on top of the cloths into a field of brilliant flowers.

Betty's brother Tommy came over and kicked sand in her face.

"Take that you mean old sister," yelled Tommy running off.

"Tommy, come back here," Betty shouted chasing him. "I'm going to kick your butt."

Betty tackled Tommy to the ground and started punching on him while screaming at him at the top of her lungs.

"I'm the dominatrix. I do all the hitting and you do all the getting."

"Okay dominatrix," a woman's voice said poking at Betty. "Time to get up so we can clean you up. I can't believe they didn't let you go to the bathroom. You smell like shit."

"This is how it's going to go down," said one of the three ladies that were in the room to clean up Betty. "I'm going to cut you lose and you are going to follow me into the bathroom. The two of them will be in the bathroom watching you get cleaned up and I will be in the hall with a stun gun in case you try to escape. Once you are finished cleaning up, you will put on this gown and go back to the bedroom where food will be waiting on you. After you finish eating we will tie you back up. If you resist in any way you will be stunned, stripped down, tied up and for the men to deal with. Let me know that you understand."

"Yes, I understand," replied Betty. "I won't give you any trouble."

The last thing Betty wanted at that point was to be stunned again. She was starving and felt grimy. Even if she could get away from the three women the chance of getting out of the house and off the island was pretty slim. Though the thought of spending the rest of her short life as a sex slave didn't necessarily appeal to her either. She decided to be patient and wait for her opportunity to escape.

Betty was cut loose and she followed the two women into the bathroom. The bathroom smelled wonderfully. Betty took a moment to breathe in the lavender fragrance. Across from the entryway was a charming wooden vanity with intricate carvings and a marble countertop. On the counter was a vase full of white Calla lilies, lotion, liquid soap and an assortment of perfume bottles. Plush towels were neatly folded and laying on heated shelves next to the vanity.

"There are unopened toothbrushes, toothpaste and deodorant in the vanity drawers," one of the ladies stated. "You can take a shower or bath if you like."

"Is it okay if I take both? I'd first like to sit on the toilet, rinse off in the shower and then take a nice, long, hot bath."

"Whatever suits your fancy. Throw your clothes in that trash bin. You won't ever be wearing those again. That jar by the tub has some pretty neat bath salts. We're going to sit right here in these chairs and keep an eye on you. Judy's going to be outside the door."

"Can I at least sit on the toilet in privacy? I told you I wouldn't give you any trouble," stated Betty.

"Tell that to Pierre," the lady replied. "I hear you knocked one of his teeth out."

"Yeah, well he deserved it."

"Whatever lady."

Betty removed her soiled clothes, placed them in the trash bin as directed. She sat on the toilet to properly relieve herself. _It never felt so good to take a dump before even if I am being starred at the whole time_. It was a little embarrassing making all her bathroom noises and wiping her butt under the scrutiny of two strange women, but what choice did she have.

Betty whipped herself with the moist towelettes by the toilet, which felt much better than regular toilet paper. She finished and flushed the toilet.

"I hope the smell wasn't too noxious for you ladies," Betty stated with a smile.

"We been out in this bayou for many a year. Trust me, we have smelled a lot worse," replied one of the ladies.

"I'm going to take a shower now," replied Betty walking towards the shower.

"What the hell happened to your leg? It looks pretty bad. Let me have the doc take a look at that before you jump in the shower. I don't want you to get it infected."

"I'm sure the men folk would hate to see me lose my leg. That would really spoil the romance," Betty stated sarcastically.

"Don't worry, they would just give you to the guards who would find lots of fun things to do to you over the next couple of years that we keep you alive. I'll be right back with the doctor. Just sit there on the toilet until I get back."

Soon afterwards the doctor showed up to take a look at Betty's wound.

"I can't believe they didn't call me sooner. The wound has already become infected, but it should heal okay. I'll clean it out, sew it up and give you a shot to help clear the infection and help the wound heal. I would suggest that they do not have sex with you for a couple of days."

"Is it okay if I take a shower and bath?"

"Sure, just put some of this ointment on the wound once you have finished and apply a clean bandage."

The doctor took care of Betty's leg and prepared to leave. Betty thanked him and stepped into the shower. The shower was a large sized stall made from Italian marble. It had several shower heads protruding from every possible direction. She felt clean just looking at them. Betty turned on every head full blast, all the way hot. She stood in the middle and let the hot streams of water wash the funk from her body. A tube of aromatic, liquid soap sat on a shelf. She squeezed it all over her body and rubbed it in. She couldn't help but want to pleasure herself, but there were too many eyes on her. She dreaded the thought that the remainder of her sex life would be forced on her by men she didn't like and end with her death.

_Oh what the hell, what are they going to do to me? Kidnap me and lock me up in some house in some backwoods swamp_ , she thought. Betty grabbed a handful of the liquid soap and rubbed herself into oblivion.

Betty finished her shower and dried off with one of the large, warm, fluffy towels. They were the color of gold. _At least I will live in style the few miserable months that I have left on this planet_.

Betty ran hot water into the sunken tub, bending over to sprinkle some of the fragrant bath salts from the jar on the tub under the watchful eyes of the two female guards.

"Nice ass," one of the ladies stated giggling. "Did you enjoy touching yourself in the shower?"

"You can be assured that I wasn't thinking about either of you," Betty snapped. She hated being out of control. That's one of the reasons she became a police officer. However, she decided she'd better get used to it if she wanted to survive in captivity. As long as she was alive she had a chance to escape. For years she played the role of dominatrix in her off hours, making men cry out in pain and grovel at her feet. Now she'll probably be the one groveling if she couldn't escape. However, the heavily guarded bridge leading from a compound surrounded by a swamp full of alligators made her chances of escape pretty slim.

Betty sank down into the tub, enjoying the warmth of the water against her skin and its fragrance in her nostrils. She let sleep over take her and rested there until awoken by her guards.

"Time's up sleeping beauty," one of the ladies watching her stated. "Put on this gown and we'll take you back to the room for some food and sleep. Looks like you got out of sex for the night."

"Lucky me," replied Betty sarcastically. She placed some of the ointment on her wound as the doctor instructed and covered it with a fresh bandage. She put on her gown and followed her escorts back to the room. No sooner had she lain down than a servant brought her some food.

"Good evening miss," spoke the servant. "I brought you a large bowl of jambalaya with rice and a glass of red wine. I hope you enjoy it."

"I'm sure I will," replied Betty. "Thank you for bringing it."

"You're welcome. Just place the tray by the door when you are done. There's bottled water on the dresser if you need it. Good night miss."

"Goodnight sir," replied Betty.

Betty finished her food and placed the tray by the door. Later two of the guards came in.

"Betty I'm just going to tie your hands together in front of you," stated one of the guards grabbing Betty by the wrists. "Somebody will be outside your door all night. Stay away from the door and the window unless you want to be tied up to the bed. You don't bother us and we won't bother you," ended the guard walking out the door with the tray in her hand and the other guard close behind her.

"Got it," replied Betty.

After the wonderful bath and food Betty laid down and was out cold in no time, even with her hands tied. She dreamt of great battles, flying fantasies and sitting with her grandmother. A few hours later she awoke in a dark room to the sound of gunfire. She thought this could be an opportunity for her to sneak out. She retrieved her knife from under the pillow and cut herself loose. She grabbed one of the chairs in the room, sat down on the floor and worked away at the chair until she got one of the legs loose. With the chair leg in one hand the knife in the other she looked out the window to see if you could view the commotion. Unfortunately there was nothing to see from the window except the bars that covered it.

Betty moved away from the window and went for the door. She tried the door knob, but it was locked. She looked for a way to get the hinges loose to no avail. Suddenly she heard footsteps approaching her door. She took a position behind the door poised to attack.

***

Uan arrived at the apartment building he was sharing with Calvin late that evening angry that he was unable to find that pesky alien or his earthling companion.

"Hey Uan," Calvin greeted Uan as he walked into the huge condo where they lived. Calvin was Uan's assistant since Uan killed Calvin's previous boss and took over his apartment building. Uan was a crewmember from the Euclidian resource ship _Andrea_ and came to Earth on a mission from the captain to kill an escaped alien. Uan came from the Ossuary System where he grew up and later joined the Andrea as an assassin. The alien he was chasing had special powers and could possibly use them to thwart his ship's planned invasion of Earth. The alien befriended an earthling named Morgan that the ship's security team was able to track down by tapping into a security camera. Uan decided not to kill Calvin because he needed his assistance getting around in DC and communicating with people.

Uan didn't like Calvin much at first because he wasn't very tough. Even after Uan spent a couple of hours teaching him some fighting techniques, Calvin was unable to defend himself. When faced with a couple local gang members who threatened Calvin's life, he was too afraid to use the moves Uan taught him. Because of that, Uan was concerned that he couldn't count on him if needed him during a fight. But when a fight did occur Calvin jumped in to save Uan.

"Hello Calvin," Uan responded sourly.

"You won't have to worry about that cop bothering you anymore."

"What cop? What are you talking about?"

"The lady cop that saved you from the bar fight then tied you to her bed and beat the crap out of you."

"She didn't beat the crap out of me. She is just more physical in bed than most women. So what happened to her?"

"Little Randy turned her over to the Italians. They had some sort of beef with her. Anyway, she's out of your hair now."

"Why would he do that?" Uan said angrily.

"I guess for the money. I thought you didn't like her."

"I did not like her, but I do not want to see her harmed either. I am going to get some food. Find out where she is," Uan stated harshly.

Uan grabbed some raw steak from the fridge while Calvin went to talk to Little Randy. Little Randy was a gang member that inherited the nearby neighborhood to carry out his illegal activities after Uan killed the previous gang leader Bo Sam and moved into his place.

"Hey Uan I got some information for you on Betty," Calvin said entering the room. "According to Little Randy a couple of Luciano's guys picked her up this morning and took her to his place. That's all he knows."

"Do you know how to get to Luciano's place?"

"Yes, of course. He lives in Little Italy. It's just a couple of miles from here."

"Good, then go get the car. I want you to take me there. I plan to get her back from Luciano."

"If you say so. However, it won't be as easy as previous encounters you have had since you arrived. Luciano has lots of guys who carry big guns with lots of bullets," said Calvin walking for the door.

"I am not a fan of easy. I want it to be hard. I want them to put up a good fight. It will make killing them all the more rewarding."

Calvin walked out the door shaking his head and pulled the SUV out in front of the apartment building to wait for Uan. Uan jumped into the SUV and Calvin headed out to Luciano's place. Luciano had a large three-story, ten-bedroom mansion in Little Italy. It was nestled in a cul-de-sac surrounded by houses of other family members. Calvin parked just down the street from the mansion to stay hidden from its cameras.

"Calvin, just stay her. I'll go in and get Betty and be right back."

"What about Luciano's men?"

"I'll get inside using my stealth ability. I'll take out whoever I need to and bring her back. Of course, if she's dead I'll make sure every one of them is too before I return," said Uan with a snarl.

Uan cloaked himself and stepped out of the SUV. He jogged up to the large brick fence surrounding the mansion, past the gate with the guards and then hopped over the seven-foot fence in a single stride.

_What I wouldn't give to have those powers_ , Calvin thought to himself. _The honeys I could sneak up on!_

Calvin was bitten by Uan soon after they met so Uan's enzymes would permit Calvin to see him while he was cloaked. As an Ossie, Uan could make himself invisible to non-Ossies. He also had incredible strength for someone only five-foot six inches tall.

Uan walked around the side of the house to look for a good entry point to enter it. He spied a large third-floor balcony overlooking a pool and surmised that it must lead to Luciano's part of the house.

One of Luciano's guard dogs trotted towards Uan after noticing his scent. The dog was perplexed that it couldn't see what was giving off the strong odor.

Uan looked down at the Rottweiler unperturbed and then thought of a way to introduce himself to Luciano. Uan attacked the dog and then leapt onto the third-floor balcony. There was Luciano sitting in the corner of the balcony in a comfy lounge chair having a cigar and chatting with one of his lieutenants. The two men looked up in utter terror as they saw one of their massive guard dogs hanging in midair bleeding from an open wound in its chest.

Uan uncloaked and hurled the huge dead beast from his spear towards the two men. Luciano's lieutenant went for his gun and Uan sprung forward and jabbed his sword into his chest and twisted it causing him to momentarily writhe in pain and then just fall forward dead. Luciano gasped at what unfolded before him, dropping the cigar from his mouth as Uan turned towards him.

"Take me to Betty and I will let you live," demanded Uan pointing his spear at Luciano.

At that moment noticed movement behind him. He cloaked and shifted to the right avoiding bullets from two men that stepped onto the balcony firing automatic weapons.

"Where did he go?!" Shouted Luciano.

Uan leapt from the side cutting off the hand of one of the men and driving his spear into the chest of the other one, pushing him into the room against two other men with their guns drawn. Luciano watched in horror as he viewed his men getting chopped up by an invisible assailant. As soon as Uan finished with those four, four more men showed up firing around the room trying to hit him.

Uan ducked and rolled toward a wall. He darted behind the men and stabbed two of them as the other two turned their guns towards him. He jumped over their heads and stood behind them watching them shoot into an empty room. Luciano stayed on the balcony calling for backup.

"This is Luciano. Send everybody up here now! There's some invisible guy making mincemeat of my people. I don't give a damn what it sounds like. You call as many people as you can and get them over here."

Once the shooting died down Uan shoved his spear into the smaller man and yanked the gun from the taller man's hands. This guy was six foot seven and weighed well over three hundred pounds. This was just the challenge Uan was looking for. Uan uncloaked and threw his spear to the ground.

"How about you show me how tough you are big guy?" Uan snarled.

The man was frightened, but took a swing at Uan just the same. "I don't know what you are, but I am going to crush your tiny body."

His swing missed, but his follow-up kick caught Uan in the gut and hurled him across the room. Uan sprang to his feet and ran at the large man ducking another blow and landing one his own into the man's midsection, knocking him to the floor. The man took it in stride rolling to his feet and landing a blow to Uan's chest knocking him down. He grabbed Uan by the foot and belt and flung him against the far wall crushing a picture and the wall behind it.

"Finally a worthy adversary," yelled Uan jumping to his feet and lunging at the man. They stood in front of each other and traded blows until Uan got a clear shot at his face and stunned him with a blow to his cheek. As he staggered Uan lifted him over his head and threw him at the men coming up the stairs taking them out. Luciano stood in the doorway with a gun trying to aim at Uan who had cloaked and grabbed his spear.

Uan knocked the gun from Luciano's hand and dragged him back onto the balcony putting the spear to his throat.

"Now you quickly tell me where Betty is or I am going to cut your head from your body," Uan threated.

"What the hell are you and who is this Betty person?" Luciano stammered.

"Who I am is not up for discussion. Betty is the policewomen you kidnapped yesterday. Take me to her now or I will start chopping off your body parts until your memory improves. If you are not the right person to talk to I will kill you quickly and find someone who can help me."

"Oh that woman. What would you want with her? She's just a policewoman and she's trouble."

"Do not worry about why I want her. You should worry about where she is and that she is still alive."

"She's not here. I sent her to Louisiana. I had my people hand her off to an associate of mine who lives in Nagadish, Louisiana."

"What is his name?"

"Pierre. Pierre Thibodeaux."

"You don't have his address."

"No, we only connect by phone."

"I think it's best if you didn't call him. I am going to go to this Nagadish place to find Pierre and then I am going to take Betty back from him," said Uan bearing his sharp teeth and leaning into Luciano so his stale breathe hit Luciano in the face, while blood from his spear dripped down Luciano's clothes. "If your associate has killed her I am going to come back here and cut up the rest of your crew before slowly peeling the skin from your body and watching you bleed to death. If you are smart you will forget you ever saw me. I do not want you warning Pierre or anyone else of my plans."

"I promise I won't say a word," said Luciano visibly afraid for his life.

Uan noticed several more of Luciano's men coming towards him from the room off the balcony. He shoved Luciano to the floor then turned and jumped from the balcony, cloaking on the way over. Luciano and his men leaned over the balcony and saw nothing. It was as if Uan was never there. However, there were too many dead bodies lying around for Luciano to believe that he was just having a bad dream. He stood there looking at the pile of dead bodies and began to piss his pants.

***

Uan climbed into the SUV next to Calvin.

"They took Betty to some city in Louisiana. Take me home and then show me where Nagadish is on the map. I will have our reconnaissance ship take me there"

"You mean take US there don't you? I want to join you on this trip. It could be like our trip together to Tajikistan."

"No, that is not a good idea. This trip is likely to include a lot more violence. In Tajikistan we were just dealing with an arms dealer. I suspect Boudreau is a violent killer much like Luciano. In addition, I am sure that Luciano will warn his friends that I am coming. That will make things too dangerous for you. I just want to get in and out with as little death and destruction as possible. I am still supposed to keep a low profile here on your planet, even though I do slip up from time to time.

"Okay, you're the boss," replied Calvin putting the SUV into gear and driving off.

***

Calvin parked the SUV in front of their apartment building. Upon entering their apartment Calvin attempted to lookup Nagadish using Bing Maps with no luck.

"Uan, I'm not having much luck finding this place using Bing. Let me call my Cajun friend Keith to see if he can help us out."

"Fine, I am going to grab a steak from the refrigerator.

"Keith, my man, I'm so glad you picked up. I'm trying to find Nagadish on the map," Calvin stated.

"You mean the one in Louisiana?" Keith replied.

"Yea, that's the one."

"It's just south of Shreveport on Highway 6."

"How come I don't see it?"

"Probably because you don't know how to spell it," said Keith laughing.

"How hard can it be? Something like, N a g a d i s h right?"

"No, it's N a t c h i t o c h e s."

"You have got to be kidding me? Why would someone pronounce that word like that? Hold on, let me take another look. Oh okay. I found it on the map. I understand why I couldn't find it now. You people don't know how to pronounce shit. You can't even pronounce a simple name like New Orleans."

"Whatever Calvin. I got your, _you people,_ hangin. And it's pronounced Norlins."

"That's exactly what I mean. It's like you guys live in another country."

"Did you get what you need, I got a woman waiting on me," Keith stated impatiently.

"Sure, I got it Keith. Thanks for the help."

"Yea, anytime," replied Keith hanging up.

"Uan, I found it," shouted Calvin.

Uan came back to the room finishing off the last bite of his steak from the fridge. "Let me see where it is," requested Uan looking at Calvin's computer. "I see it. I will add the coordinates to my UCD and send them to my ship to setup a pickup and drop off. I should see you in a few hours if everything goes well."

No sooner had Uan finished speaking than he started to beam away. Calvin just shook his head in amazement. _This is almost like Star Trek. And just think I get to be part of the show._
Chapter 7

Turning the XO

Commander Filo and Yoyo sat in the Bordelle Bar still hoping for the XO of the _Andrea_ to show up. Commander Filo was told to expect him there today by one of his staff members, but so far nothing. If they were lucky the captain of the other two Euclidian resource vessels that assisted with the destruction of the Alpha home planet would appear. However, chances were slim that would happen. Still Commander Filo did not have any better leads.

"This person must be awfully special if you are waiting for him for so long in this place," stated Yoyo to the commander.

"Meeting with him is important for our ability to connect with the Euclidians. He is the executive officer of the _Andrea_ , a very prominent Euclidian resource ship. He has a direct line to its captain. His captain was very influential in the Euclidian military. The captain's father also had great connections in political and social circles.

After another hour or so, two of the bar's dancers walked into the bar on the arms of the XO from the _Andrea_. Commander Filo tipped the server to ask the XO over for a drink of Tammarian grog.

The XO asked his escorts to wait for him in a booth and walked over to see who made the generous offer to him.

"Hello commander. Please let me speak before you voice any objections."

"Sure, go ahead and speak your peace," replied the XO of the _Andrea_ taking a seat _._

Commander Filo motioned for the server to get the drinks of Tammarian grog for the table.

"I am Commander Filo from the Alpha ship _Adele_. This is Ambassador Yoyo representing the Magi people from the planet Tammaria. She makes a mean grog by the way." The XO only grunted.

"We sincerely would like to improve relations between the Alpha and Euclidian people. Yoyo is acting as a liaison to help facilitate negotiations. I would like her to say a few words if you don't mind. Hold on, here's our drinks." Commander Filo let the server place the three steins of Tammarian grog in front of them. "To the Euclidian Empire and better relations," stated Commander Filo raising his stein. The XO shrugged and took a big swig of his grog. Yoyo slurped down some of hers.

"Yoyo if you please," urged Commander Filo.

Yoyo removed her goggles revealing her glowing eyes being careful to keep her hood up to prevent onlookers from noticing. The XO looked at her in shock.

"Don't look away," commanded Yoyo. "Look into my eyes and relax. I want you to throw away your inhibitions and submit yourself to my gaze."

The XO leaned forward in the booth across from Yoyo while she continued her gaze into his eyes.

"I want you to forget any animosities that you may have against the Alpha people. Think of me as your best friend. You trust me and would do anything for me," stated Yoyo. "I'm not a threat to you. Being around me makes you feel comfortable. Do you like my smile?"

"Yes I do," responded the XO.

"Commander Filo is your new best friend. He just bought you a Tammarian grog. You feel completely at ease with him and are happy to do whatever he wants. It will even please you to obey him, correct?"

"Yes, it will," replied the XO.

"Thanks Yoyo. Now why don't you go off and enjoy yourself. I'm sure there are still parts of the city that you haven't seen yet."

"I'd be glad to. There's a club I would like to visit. Let me know if you are successful setting up meetings with him."

"Oh I will Yoyo. I will."

Yoyo walked out and Commander Filo turned to the XO.

"XO, you're on the ship commanded by Captain Shisal, are you not?"

"Yes I am."

"Did you know that he plans to cut you out of your portion of the revenues from your next mission?"

"He's mean, but he tends to be a fair person. I can't believe he would do that."

"Not only would he, but he has already told me that he will. He plans to frame you for stealing goods destined for the government and have you arrested. Doesn't that make you angry?"

"Of course it does."

"This is what I want you to do to protect your share of the bounty. When he is ashore during your next mission, away from the protection of the ship's systems, I want you to have him killed. That is the only way to protect what's yours. Don't you agree?"

The XO rubbed his chin in deep thought. "That's not an easy thing to do. I can certainly discuss it with him."

"That's not enough. You must kill Captain Shisal!"

"I will kill him!" Stated the XO defiantly.

"You can go rejoin your ladies now XO. Thanks for coming by. Please forget we ever talked."

"Sure thing. Goodbye," said the XO walking off.

Commander Filo clapped his hands together and let out a wicked laugh. _Two down two to go!_

***

Yoyo and Commander Filo watched as the captain of the Euclidian resource ship _Alvin_ sat down across from them resting his coat on the back of his chair. They decided to go over and have a chat with him.

"Greetings Captain Krashan. You probably don't know me. I'm Commander Filo of the alpha ship _Adele_. I was in space in route to my home planet while you were busy destroying it."

"I hope you got to see the event. It was spectacular. I recorded it if you would like to get a look at it."

"No, I've seen it enough times to memorize it though. Right now I want to see you get hacked up by that Ossie over there."

"Oh, you're too much of a coward to attack me," said Captain Krashan leaning into him with a finger in his chest, "so you want me to attack someone who has done nothing to me. Is that right?"

"I'm not very good at explaining things. Perhaps my colleague could do a better job. Yoyo, could you come over for a minute? Yoyo, this is Captain Krashan. Could you convince him that we should work together?"

"Captain Krashan," whispered Yoyo tapping the captain on his arm, while removing his goggles. "This Alpha is your friend and you want to do whatever he tells you. Do you understand?"

"Yes little one," replied the captain.

"Thanks Yoyo. I'll catch up with you later. I'm going to have a private chat with the captain," Commander Filo stated walking off with the captain.

"Captain Krashan," stated the commander, "that Ossie over there is your mortal enemy. You hate him immensely. I want you to go over there and kill him with your bare hands."

"With pleasure," replied the captain. "Hey Ossie, you're going down," screamed the captain diving at the Ossie.

The captain tackled the Ossie to the ground and started pounding on him, while the crew of the _Alvin_ looked on in disbelief. The Ossie kneed the captain over his head and jumped to his feet. The captain's crew looked on in disbelief.

He turned grabbed the captain by the back of his pants and spun him backwards throwing the captain over his head and five meters away. The captain rolled to a stop and then looked back at the Ossie with disdain.

"Why are you attacking me?" Shouted the Ossie at the captain.

"Because I hate your guts!"

"You don't even know me."

"I don't care. I'm still going to kill you," replied Captain Krashan getting to his feet and rushing towards the Ossie.

The Ossie turned and vanished as the captain's crew gathered around him.

"Captain, are you okay?" A crewman asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," replied the captain pushing the crewman away from him. He grabbed his jacket, walked out the door and down the street where he was met by his friend Captain Witt of the resource ship _Bonni_.

"Krashan are you doing okay? I walked into the bar just as you attacked an Ossie from your own crew. What the hell happened to you in there?"

"I don't know Witt. For some reason I felt compelled to attack him."

Commander Filo had followed Captain Krashan out of the bar and couldn't believe his luck when he saw the fourth captain on his list show up. He thought up a plan and waited hatch it.

"Krashan, you need to get back to your ship and get checked," insisted Captain Witt.

"I will. I just need some time to clear my head."

"Okay, I'm going back to the Bordelle Bar. I'll see you later."

"Sure, Witt. Thanks for checking on me."

Captain Witt turned back to go to the Bordelle Bar while Commander Filo ran and caught up with Captain Krashan and whispered in his ear. He then stepped to the side and watched the captain run down the street after his friend.

"Hey Witt wait up," Captain Krashan shouted running after Captain Witt.

Captain Witt turned in time to see Captain Krashan stab him in the chest with a knife killing him dead. Captain Krashan then ran head long into the grill of an oncoming military transport vehicle killing himself.

Chapter 8

Retrieving Betty

Uan was irate when he heard what had happened to Betty and he couldn't understand why. Somehow he felt an attachment for her. Even though he deeply wanted to kill her for humiliating him the way she did, he couldn't stand to think of anyone else harming her. He called the ship up that was stationed on Earth under the Atlantic Ocean and asked them to transport him to Natchitoches, LA, which is where the truck that picked up Betty supposedly came from.

Uan arrived that evening and went straight to a local bar to see if he could find Pierre Thibodeaux. He spotted a few guys drinking beers standing around a pool table and decided to see what he could find out from them.

"Excuse me, I'm looking to score a kilo and heard that I should look up Pierre Thibodeaux."

"He might be the guy, but why should I tell you anything?" Said one of the guys standing by the pool table.

"How about I slip you a fifty?" Responded Uan.

"That would work. How do I know that you're not a cop?"

"Really? A tiny guy with a Scottish accent and face tattoo. I don't think I would pass the entrance exam."

"Good point. Pass me the fifty and I'll give you the info."

Uan gave him the fifty and the man whispered in his ear, "He hangs out at JJ's Club on highway 1 just south of the airport."

"Thanks," said Uan and walked out. He walked out to the parking lot and jumped into the passenger side of a truck a man had just started and offered him fifty dollars to drop him off at JJ's.

"Get the hell out my truck little fella before I drag you out by your ear," replied the man.

Uan placed the blade of his spear to the man's throat and stated, "You take me to the club or I'll cut you from ear to ear. What do you think of that big fella?"

"I think if you slide that blade back a bit I can put this truck in gear and git you to that bar you asked about," the man said nervously.

Uan obliged the man and ten minutes later he was standing in front of JJ's. Uan handed the man fifty dollars and stepped down from the truck, which immediately pulled away. The club was a long rectangular cinder block building in the middle of a dirt parking lot. Loud country music could be heard coming from the open club doors.

As Uan approached the door his path was blocked by the bouncer.

"You don't look old enough to come in here little fella. You got any ID?" Asked the bouncer.

"Sure," responded Uan grabbing the man by the crotch and lifting him in the air against the building. It is in my hand. Would you like me to pull it out so you can see it?"

"No!" Gasped the man astonished to be lifted up so high by such a small person.

"That is what I thought," replied Uan releasing the man so he could drop to his feet.

Uan walked through the door and felt a hand on his chest stopping his forward progress.

"Where you going fella," a stern firm voice stated. "It costs five dollars to get up in here."

Uan was being blocked by a petite woman. Though she was pretty she had piercing eyes and a tough demeanor that gave one the impression she was not the type of person to be ignored. Uan resisted the urge to simply snap her neck and throw her to the floor. He was concerned it might draw too much attention now that he was inside the club. He didn't want to scare away the man he was looking for.

"Here, just keep the change," said Uan handing her a twenty.

"Thanks. I'm Dominique. You look like you're new around here. I'm off in an hour if you need a tour guide or anything else tonight."

"I'll keep that in mind. Can you point Pierre Thibodaux out to me?" asked Uan attempting to shout over the loud music.

"Sure. He's the big guy with the beard in the blue three piece suit across from the dance floor."

"Thanks. I see him."

Uan walked into the crowded room towards Pierre, the man that picked Betty up from Shreveport and drove her into the heart of Cajun territory. He passed by him and stood a few feet away waiting for an opportunity to talk to him in private. Uan got a few strange looks from passersby, but ignored them. Pierre stood along the wall with some of his associates admiring the women dancing in their tight, short skirts. After about forty-five minutes Pierre finally pushed away from the wall and headed towards the men's room.

Uan followed Pierre in and spotted one man finishing up at the sink. Pierre went into a stall and closed the door behind him. Uan grabbed the man at the sink and shoved him through Pierre's closed stall door forcing Pierre across the commode. He closed the door behind him and started chopping the stranger up with his spear.

"What the fuck!" Exclaimed Pierre shoving his way to the back of the stall.

Uan dropped the stranger to the floor and looked at Pierre. "I have no idea who this man is I just cut up. If I do not hesitate to cut him," growled Uan leaning into Pierre with his spear at his throat, "what do you think I would do to a man who hurt someone I care about?"

"What do you want?" Asked Pierre in a trembling voice.

Uan just paused for a while and stared at Pierre through his shades. Then he continued. "You brought a woman named Betty here. I want to know what happened to her. You tell me what I want to know and I will let you live. You hesitate and I will start slicing you up."

"I handed her off to Boudreau this afternoon. She was just fine when I left her."

"Where can I find this Boudreau person?"

"He lives back up in the Negreet bayou on a compound in the middle of a swamp full of alligators."

"How will I know when I have found it?"

"Negreet is not a big place. It only has one street that goes through the town. Two miles up the road you'll pass by the Collier Memorial Park on your right. Just beyond that you will see a bridge that is protected by some guards. That leads to his private island. You should find her there."

"Good. If I do not find here there I will be back and you will be missing some body parts."

"I can't say for sure, but she should be there."

Uan wiped his spear off on Pierre's pants and walked out of the bathroom and towards the entrance. He paused in front of Dominique trying to think of what to say.

"I'm on my way out. You want me to show you around town?" Dominique asked.

"Do you know where Negreet is?"

"Yes, but no one in their right mind would want to go up there. Especially this time of night."

"Who said I was in my right mind? I can give you a thousand dollars if you just drop me off at a bridge off the main road."

"Oh, you're going to Boudreau's place. You definitely have a death wish. He owe you a bundle money or something."

"He has something of mine and I plan to get it back."

"Okay, but you better have an army of people meeting you there."

"I won't need an army. I just need you to take me there. I will do the rest. I will need you to do me a favor as well. I will pay you one thousand dollars if you wait for me to return and drive me to Shreveport."

"For a thousand dollars I'll carry you to Shreveport on my back!"

"That will not be necessary. Just get me to that bridge as soon as you can."

"Sure. Let's go."

Dominique led Uan to her black Lincoln that she used as a limo to chauffeur people in her off hours. She started the car and headed down highway 6. Uan sat in the back and looked out the window into the darkness. All he could see were endless trees capped by a field of stars. He let himself get lost in the darkness as the anger welled up inside him. He wallowed in his anger. An anger that typically drove him to violence.

Uan had only known Betty for a brief moment of time, but somehow she had gotten under his skin. The fearless way in which she had tied him to that bed and had her way with him enraged him. Then she just untied him and walked away with her back to him when he could have so easily snapped her neck. Her confidence impressed him. Now he was afraid she might be dead.

The thought made him angry. Angry that someone would dare steal away a woman he cared about, not really understanding why he cared about Betty. The good news is that pretty soon he would get to do some killing tonight. Whether Betty was alive or dead, those that held her captive would pay for doing so.

Dominique was soon in Many and wound her way through the small town and out the other side and continued down highway 6 until she hit the turnoff for Negreet. The paved road soon into a dirt road and the surrounding trees seem to swallow them up. After five minutes of jostling down the unpaved road Dominique pulled over and turned off her lights.

"The bridge to Boudreau's place is just ahead around that bend in the road we should walk from here," said Dominique.

"There is no we," replied Uan. "You wait here for me to return."

"I didn't come this far to sit in the car and let you do all the work. He has a lot of men and you'll need my help. Anyway, he's a piece of shit lowlife that has more than once killed a friend of mine. I just want a little payback."

"Okay, just stay behind me though. I want to make sure my friend is still alive before any shooting starts."

They slowly made their way to the head of the bridge. It was blocked by a gate and there were guards just on the other side. The water around the bridge was filled with alligators. At the other end of the bridge were more guards and a compound with five buildings. The compound was surrounded by a fence to keep the alligators out.

"Let me tell you what is going to happen. I will jump the fence, take out the two guards and then open the gate. If Betty is still alive I will free her and come running out with her. Shoot anyone that does not look like me."

"I got it. You're going to jump a seven foot fence, kill those guys without them seeing you, then run past the other guards, break your girlfriend out of a heavily guarded compound and then come running this way with her over your shoulder. Is that it?"

"Yes, something like that. I should be back in ten minutes. If I seem to disappear it is just a ninja trick I learned."

Dominique gave him a look of incredulity as he briskly walked away cloaking himself.

_What the hell?_ Thought Dominique as Uan disappeared before her very eyes. _That's some ninja trick._

Uan hopped over the fence with ease and landed quietly on the other side. He quickly stabbed both guards in the chest with his spear and quietly laid them on the bridge. He then ran towards the compound where four other guards were waiting, two on each side of the bridge. Uan approached the two on the left, sliced through their necks and through one of them across the bridge at the other two guards. The guards stood there stunned watching one of their colleagues suddenly take flight towards them. One of them lifted his automatic rifle and started firing at the flying body. Uan ran to them, blocked by the body he tossed, and killed the two guards.

The noise stirred several people from inside the compound causing lights to be turned on and more guards running towards the bridge. Uan used the opportunity to sneak into the compound to find Betty. Uan spent fifteen minutes going through the first building with no luck. He was growing impatient and didn't want to waste any more time searching buildings.

He found a guard walking around the grounds, dragged him behind a building and threw him to the ground. He put his hand over the guard's mouth and stabbed him in the leg with his spear. The guard let out a muffled scream.

"I need to know where they are keeping the policewoman that was kidnapped from DC. You tell me now or I will stab you in the other leg and then other body parts until you decide to talk," threatened Uan.

"She's in the building over there," whimpered the guard pointing to one of the buildings. "Upstairs in the back on the right-side of the building."

"Thanks," said Uan tossing the man over the fence and into the bayou. Several alligators went after the man as he splashed in the water screaming. _I actually said thanks_ , Uan snickered to himself.

Uan went in the front door of the building the man pointed to and up the stairs. He found the door to the room the guard described. He slowly opened the door expecting to see a guard inside. As soon as he entered Betty, who was hiding behind the door, hit him in the head with a chair leg.

"What the hell was that for?" Uan screamed. "I came here to save you."

"How was I supposed to know it was you? How did you find me and why would you even want to save me?"

"No time for chit chat. We need to get out of here before the guards come back."

"If you notice my leg, I can't walk very well, let alone run anywhere."

"Not to worry I will carry you out."

"Really! You are just going to throw me over your shoulder and tip toe out of here unseen by the guards. Is that right?"

"Yes!" Uan replied. He grabbed her, through her over his shoulder, pulled out his pulse rifle and went down the stairs towards the front door. As he exited the building he cloaked and headed for the bridge.

Betty screamed as Uan disappeared drawing the attention of the guards. Uan had the rifle set for widespread stun and let the guards have it as he headed towards the bridge. There were five in front of him looking in amazement as Betty jerkily floated towards them. Uan fired stunning them all at once. He jumped over the bodies and headed down the bridge followed by several guards.

Dominique stood at the other end of the bridge watching the floating woman come towards her, which she figured was Uan's ninja trick again. She targeted the guards and started taking them out one by one with her 9 mm pistol.

Uan reached Dominique and urged her to go for the car when he heard someone screaming at him.

"You don't take what's mine and get away with it," Boudreau screamed. "I'm going to hunt you down like a dog and tear you limb from limb."

Uan turned towards Boudreau and snarled, "she is my woman you bastard." He pointed his rifle at Boudreau and vaporized him leaving nothing but his shoes.

They all ran down the road, hopped into Dominique's car and headed towards Many.

"How did you do that do that invisible man thing?" Asked Betty shocked.

"I am an alien and it is one of my abilities," replied Uan.

"I am an alien," laughed Dominique. "Really? I thought you were a ninja."

At that moment a large truck came out of the trees and rammed their car shoving it to the side of the road. The truck backed up and Uan picked up his rifle and pointed it at the truck, but the truck rammed the car again knocking it into the bayou before he could get a shot off.

The car flipped over and started to quickly sink towards the bottom. With the windows all broken the water rushed pinning them inside. Uan grabbed his universal connection device and started tapping away at it. At that moment an alligator reached into the car with its snout and dragged Dominique out of the car by her arm. Uan grabbed his spear, swam out of the car and stabbed the alligator in the eye. The alligator loosened his grip on Dominique, but two more came after Uan and pulled him towards the bottom of the water.

Betty, in the back of the car, was gasping for breath from an air pocket in the car. She started shivering with fear as an alligator came into the car at her, opening its mouth around her head.
Chapter 9

Freeing Dissidents

Li Xiao did not know where Yao Ming was being held, but she was aware of eight Red Wall dissidents, three women and five men, that were being held captive in Qincheng Prison outside of Beijing. She used the transport device that Cobalt gave her to explore the prison and locate the group of dissidents. The three women were in a comfortable cell much like a college dorm room drinking tea. The five men were in a typical prison cell with six small bunk beds. They used the extra bed to sit and play cards. Li Xiao noticed that one of men was missing on the day she decided to free them. She concluded that he must be in the infirmary or maybe even dead.

Li Xiao donned her warrior princess outfit to protect her identity and then transported herself to an isolated area of Xiao Tangshan Park near the prison. She reexamined the park ensuring that the area was free of people and cameras. She set her device to auto return in three seconds, placed it in her vest pocket and pressed the transport button.

Li Xiao appeared in the women's cell next to two of the women.

"Stay calm. I'm here to free you," she said putting her arms around two of the women. "I'll be back for you momentarily," she stated looking at the third woman. At that she disappeared and reappeared in the park.

"Please stay here and wait for me to return," stated Li Xiao to the two women. She pressed the transmit button on her device and reappeared in the prison as the cell door was opening. Le Xiao tossed a concussion grenade from her vest at the guards and grabbed the remaining woman as the grenade exploded stunning the guards into inaction. The two women rolled across the bed and then into the grass in the park knocking over one of the previous women she had freed.

"Hello everyone, I am Guan Yin. I have come to free you and the other dissidents. There are five men that I still need to free. Once I have freed you all I will take you wherever you would like to go."

Li Xiao set the coordinates to the men's cell, placed the device in her vest and pushed the transmit button. She arrived by two of the male prisoners.

"Remain calm," stated Li Xiao. "I am here to free you."

She embraced the two men next to her and then transported out.

"Security," a hurried voice came over the intercom in the security office. "The Red Wall women have been freed by the Goddess Guan Yin. We are checking the status of the Red Wall men."

Three guards entered the cell where the male dissidents were being held just in time to see Li Xiao disappear with two of them. The sight of her dressed as the ancient goddess made them pause.

"Security, two of the male Red Wall prisoners have been taken by the goddess."

"There is no goddess you idiots!" Yelled the director pushing the security operator away from the microphone. "Get in there and guard the other two. I will send reinforcements."

The guards placed the two prisoners on a cot with their backs to each other and pointed their guns around the room waiting for Li Xiao's return. This time Li Xiao dropped down from the ceiling on top of one of the guards knocking him to the ground while kicking another one in the head on the way down. The third guard spun around to face Li Xiao but she had already propelled a steel ball at his head. He fell backwards dropping his gun. Li Xiao jumped up, grabbing the guard by his arm, spun him around hard against the metal door frame rendering him unconscious. She could hear running footsteps from approaching guards. She grabbed one of the prisoners from the cot where he sat throwing him atop of the prisoner she pushed the transport button on her device sending them all from the cell and into the park.

"Director, they're gone, they're all gone," stated a guard into his radio. "The guards are all lying on the floor unconscious."

"Get down to the interrogation cell now. I want Lee Ho Jong chained to his chair and surrounded on all sides. Do not let him get away. I don't want to have to send condolence letters to your families!" Shouted the director.

Li Xiao appeared at the park with the last of the prisoners. They all stood around her in amazement.

"Are you truly the goddess Guan Yin?" Asked one of the female prisoners.

"No, but I represent her. Is everyone safe? There seems to be one person missing."

"Lee Ho Jong was taken out of the cell this morning to be interrogated. He is probably being tortured in the interrogation cell on the top floor, at the north side of the building. They typically only keep us for about two hours."

"I understand. I will try to get him later. Right now I want to get all of you to safety. Let me know where you would like to be taken and I will take you right away."

The six prisoners spoke amongst themselves for a few minutes then responded to Li Xiao.

"We all would like to go to the offices of the Free China Organization in New York please," said one of the prisoners.

"I know the place quite well," said Li Xiao. "Give me a moment and I will take you all there."

Li Xiao went off to the side and setup her device to transport the six dissidents to the Free China offices in Manhattan. She found an empty storeroom in the basement of the building that had light coming into it from a window near the ceiling. She set her transport device to send them to the storeroom. She placed her device in her vest and returned.

"Are you all ready to go?"

"Yes, we are ready priestess. First we would like to honor you and the work you do. They all cao taoed in front of Li Xiao and stated, "xiexie nǚshén."

Li Xiao bowed to them and replied, "bu ku qi. Now we must go. I need three of you on each side of me and one person holding me around my waste from behind. Those on the left grab my left arm with your left hand and use your right arm to hold on to each other. Those on the right grab my right arm with your right hand and use your left arm to hold on to each other. Great now squeeze tight."

Li Xiao placed her hand in her vest and pressed the transport button. Before she could blink they were all inside the storage room in the basement of the Free China offices.

"Is everyone okay?" Li Xiao asked.

They all felt each other in disbelief. _From jail to park to Manhattan within minutes._ It must be a dream they thought.

"I am fine," they all finally responded one at a time.

"Great. I wish you well on your journey. I will go and attempt to free your colleague if he is still alive. Peace be with you," Li Xiao stated and then vanished. They all bowed and said a prayer for Guan Yin.

Li Xiao returned to her home to find Lee Ho Jong and free him from the prison. She used her device to determine his location and saw that a series of guards had completely surrounded Lee Ho Jong. He was chained to a chair and a guard was sitting on his lap with his arms around his waist. _Getting Lee Ho Jong out is going to be extremely challenging, but not impossible_ , she thought.

Li Xiao setup several coordinates in her transport device, grabbed some infrared goggles, along with some other equipment and transported herself to the crawl space above the interrogation room. She placed a concussion grenade on the light box and set it to go off in four seconds before transporting herself to an adjoining empty interrogation room. She set the transport timer for two seconds and then transported herself to the corner of the room where Lee Ho Jong was being held.

"Wei!" She screamed as she entered the interrogation room and ran across the wall towards the other corner, disappearing the grenade went off extinguishing the lights in the interrogation room. The guards started firing at the wall where they last saw Li Xiao.

Li Xiao lowered the infrared goggles over her eyes and transported herself to the other side of the interrogation room. The guards were still facing the other wall staring into the darkness. She pulled out her tranquilizer gun and one by one started taking the guards out. The last guard, sitting on Lee Ho Jong, hearing the other guards fall, pulled out his gun and pointed it at his prisoner.

"If I feel as much as a pin prick I will shoot this man dead," stated the guard.

Li Xiao decided to take the guard at his word and placed her gun back into its holster. She quietly walked up and grabbed Lee Ho Jong by his right ankle and pressed the transport button on her device. Suddenly the three of them were falling through the air. The guard dropped his gun and held on to Lee Ho Jong screaming. Li Xiao climbed up the guard's back, reached around and pried his right arm away from Lee Ho Jong. She forced her way between the two men and shoved the guard away from them. Li Xiao pressed the button on her transport device transporting her and Lee Ho Jong away just as the three entered the lake at Beijing's Summer Palace.

Tourists at the Summer Palace took pictures of the drenched guard as he swam to the edge of the lake and attempted to pull himself out. He was met by palace guards who were more than pleased to help pull him out and arrest him.

Li Xiao and Lee Ho Jong appeared at the Free China offices in New York alongside his colleagues who were discovered by an employee of the organization. They all cheered as the two appeared.

"Lee Ho Jong, please forgive me for getting you all wet. I have brought you here to join your colleagues. I'm sure they will take good care of you."

"Thank you Guan Yin," Lee Ho Jong stated bowing.

Li Xiao bowed in return and disappeared back to her apartment.

Chapter 10

The Gorman

The average life span of Ossie males was typically forty-five years. The females typically lived beyond sixty years. Most men died in battle warring with other tribes. Some died hunting. Dying of old age was not a death of honor for Ossie men. Dying in battle, war games or hunting was the preferred means of death.

Ossies enjoyed the challenge of hunting animals. Of all the animals they hunted the gorman were the most feared. They were ferocious fighters with sharp claws and teeth. The Ossies tended to attack them in groups in order to assuredly defeat them. Using their stealth abilities an Ossie could defeat a gorman, but the Ossie had to be quick, strong and above all extremely quiet. The gorman's sense of hearing and smell made it difficult to sneak up on one. Attacking one head on single-handed was just suicide. On occasion an elderly or sickly Ossie might attempt it to keep from dying a dishonorable death from natural causes.

Within their den the gorman were basically undefeatable and their den were all but impenetrable. Ossuary has tiny rainbow-colored slime beetles that live off of the secretions from the gorman. Their sweat, tears, urine, ear wax and feces were the nourishment for these beetles. Gorman tears were their delicacy, but were only shed when the gorman mated. At those times the gormans' eyes were covered with beetles, which caused mating to be agonizing. Only the Gorman who could withstand the pain were able to have offspring making them the toughest of the tough.

Because the gorman were basically cleaned by the slime beetle, their dens were free from smell except for the beetles' slime trails which were aromatic and phosphorescent. These secretions would make the entire cave glow. This prevented predators from using the cover of darkness to sneak in and attacking their young. This didn't stop the Ossies though who enjoyed the gorman as a delicacy. Because, as dangerous as they were, their flesh was comparably more delectable.

The slime beetle had another practice, which made it dangerous for the Ossies to venture inside the gorman's lair. Since the slime beetle cannot see very well they rely on heat to find their host animals. The beetles can't tell the difference between a gorman and an Ossie, so they would often land on Ossies attempting to sneak in to a cave to kill a gorman. Even if the Ossie brushed them away, the beetles left a tell-tale phosphorescent secretion behind on the Ossie's body making them visible to the gorman.

On rare occasion an Ossie would be valiant enough to defeat a gorman in its den. When this happened the other gorman would give the Ossie safe passage to drag the dead carcass home as a prize to be eaten by him and his chosen few.

Because of the difficulty in killing a gorman in its cave a special tattoo was given to any Ossie who was ever successful in the defeat of a gorman. Only two living Ossies carried the crescent moon tattoo, Uan and Malcolm. No Ossie ever attacked another Ossie wearing such a tattoo out of respect and fear.

When the Ossuary system was discovered by extraterrestrials the fighting between tribes ended. They felt it more rewarding and practical to kill the outsiders.

The Ossies ignored all attempts to communicate with them. The Ossies saw no benefit in befriending outsiders. They felt that would just lead to misplaced trust and betrayal.

Several alien species attempted to tame the primitive Ossies. However, their ability to cloak and relentless fighting style became too much for any species. There was no surrender, bartering or threatening the Ossies into submission. Sneaking aboard an alien spaceship and killing the entire crew once it was in the air was a badge of honor.

Transporting an entire fort to the planet was only a temporary solution. The invading army eventually had to leave the base to visit the planet or the Ossies eventually found a weakness in the fort's perimeter and would throw bodies at it until the weakness was exploited and every inhabitant of the fort was killed. Any equipment or structures that were left behind were destroyed using weapons or fire.

The Euclidians were the only ones that were able to form a relationship with the Ossies. They used there monitoring devices to listen in on the Ossies and learn their language.

They studied what motivated them and when they thought they had a plan in place they sent a Majorellen down as a hologram to present an offer to the Ossie people.

"Hello, Chocto, chief of the eastern village. I come in peace to make an offer to your people from the Euclidian," stated Lanpilk.

Chocto swung at the image with his spear with no effect. "What manner of being are you and how do you know our tongue?"

"I am a projection of myself and I learned your language from afar."

"Speak your peace and then go."

"We respect your fighting culture and would like to give you the ability to fight many species of creatures on planets far from here. We will even setup the ability for your villages to view the conquests of your people doing battle."

"And what is it you want in return?"

"We would like to place a base here in order to ensure that no unwanted species pass over your planet and cause harm to it. We do not desire to walk about your planet uninvited."

"That's it."

"For your tattooed warriors we would like to use them as special assassins and bodyguards for our people. They will be given special assignments that will take full advantage of their unique abilities."

"This offer sounds intriguing, but how can I trust your people?"

"To show our good faith we will prepare a feast of gorman and local food and drink. As entertainment for the feast one of our people will challenge Malcolm to a fight using wooden staffs. The winner will wear this glowing, golden crescent moon," Lanpilk stated holding it up so the chief could see it.

"I like the idea, but wooden staffs are not much of a weapon. Can I see this fighter of yours?"

"I apologize for the crude weapons, but the fight is not meant to be to the death. And I assure you our champion will be more than a match for Malcolm."

"Okay, we I will agree to a three month trial after the ceremony and we will see how it goes."

"Agreed. We will build a base seven kilometers south of here. Once the base is completed we will invite you over for the christening ceremony naming the base after the winner of the challenge."

"So be it," acknowledged Chief Chocto.

Three weeks later Lanpilk appeared before Chief Chocto in person to invite him to a feast on the following night. The chief accepted and the next evening a large contention of Euclidians and Ossies showed up at the new base to indulge in the feast, but most were more interested in the battle that would follow.

Two hours into the feast Lanpilk signaled the chief and he indicated that Malcolm was ready. The tables were cleared from the center of the camp and people gathered around to get a good spot for viewing the fight. Malcolm came to the middle of the area carrying his staff. He growled and went in and out of view to taunt the crowd.

"Where is your champion?" Screamed Malcolm.

"Ossies, Euclidians and other visiting species. I present our challenger Phoebe from Delta."

Phoebe appeared holding her staff above her head, smiling and waving at the crowd. She was a tall muscular Delta who had been in many battles. The Euclidians cheered and the Ossies laughed.

"She is tall, but she is a skinny woman. This is an insult," screamed Malcolm.

"I have not begun to insult you little one. Wait until the gong sounds and you shall see the insults begin."

"Maybe so, but you will not see me."

"I will most certainly smell you though."

The crowd laughed, but Malcolm just growled at the comment.

"I'm surprised that you speak Euclidian Ossie," stated Phoebe.

"I'm not just a pretty face. There have been enough of you here begging for a treaty with us that I learned a bit. Enough talk though. We fight," insisted Malcolm.

The two fighters faced each other and Lanpilk struck the gong. Malcolm disappeared and then came flying through the air, cloaked behind Phoebe with his staff high in the air to land a strike on her head. Phoebe turned and shoved her staff into his chest, making him visible as he rolled across the ground in pain. Phoebe followed him to the area swinging her staff at him as she went. Malcolm blocked her blows with his staff and jumped to his feet. He used his superior strength to force Phoebe into the middle of the ring where they traded blows back and forth.

Tiring of the back and forth Phoebe vaulted over Malcolm and spun her staff to the side of his head knocking him to the ground. This time she followed him to the ground, pinned his arms with her knees and began to pummel his face. With a grunt he used his knees to kick her over his head. He grabbed one of her ankles as she passed over, rolled to his feet, spun her over his head and then face down into the ground stunning her.

Malcolm grabbed both of her wrists, putting his foot into her lower back he pulled hard until she cried out in pain. "I'm going to show you what we do to women on our planet who don't know their place," Malcolm shouted grabbing both of her wrists with one hand and using his free hand to rip the crotch from her shorts.

"It's going to be fun showing your people why the only staff you should be holding is right here," laughed Malcolm.

"If that's what you want, that's what you're going to get," responded Phoebe giving him a scorpion kick to his back sending him over his head.

Malcolm quickly jumped to his feet and lashed out backward with his left arm hoping to catch Phoebe coming at him. Phoebe ducked his blow and reaching below him placed a firm grip on his crotch and lunged two meters into the air. On the way down, Phoebe grabbed Malcolm by the collar, pulling his head towards the ground drove it in hard knocking him out.

"Having fun yet asshole?" Phoebe snarled. She dragged Malcolm's limp body over to his chief and squatted over him.

"Chief, when he comes to, tell him this is how we treat men on our planet that mistreat women," stated Phoebe taking a long piss on Malcolm's chest. "I expect to see him at the ceremony tomorrow raising my name over our camp."

The Euclidian crowd burst into loud roars. Several members ran from the sidelines, lifting Phoebe over their heads carried her around the camp shouting her name. "Phoebe! Phoebe! Phoebe!"

The next day at the center of the camp Phoebe and Malcolm were on the podium with Chief Chocto representing the Ossie people and Captain Shisal representing the Euclidians. Chief Chocto presented Phoebe with the golden crescent medallion.

"Malcolm will now do the honor of raising the flag of this fort overhead for the first time bearing the head of a gorman on a white background and the name of the Euclidian champion Phoebe in gold letters," spoke Chief Chocto.

Malcolm raised the flag amongst cheers from the crowd.

"Let this flag be a symbol of peace between our people," Captain Shisal stated in Ossie. The captain and the chief clenched their hands and raised them high above their heads. Fireworks were shot into the air as a band played music. Food and drink was served as the festivities continued well into the night.

"Phoebe," called Malcolm tapping her on the shoulder. "Great battle yesterday. You were a worthy opponent. I would like to offer this local drink as a peace offering," said Malcolm handing her a mug.

"Thanks Malcolm. You were quite the adversary yourself. I enjoyed the match. Here's to success in future battles," stated Phoebe clinking his mug.

"I really enjoyed our battle, but I think the act at the end was a little extreme, especially considering that I was unconscious."

"Considering what you were threatening I feel you deserved it. Thanks for making it easy for me. Though I had to walk around with my ass out the rest of the evening."

"It's unfortunate I missed that. Maybe we can have another battle in the not too distant future."

"Maybe so Malcolm. Maybe so."

Malcolm gave Phoebe a nod, raised his mug and walked away.

"Great job Phoebe," said Captain Shisal walking up to her. "It's good you two are on good terms after last night. It got a bit heated there for a moment. I was concerned that I was going to have to step in and stop the fight from going to far."

"Don't fight my battles for me Chaell. I understand the risks I take when I agree to challenge someone. I don't want anyone marginalizing my abilities by giving me special treatment.

"Understood. Either way, I feel your win last night secured our relationship with the Ossies. That's important because we needed this base here."

"Glad I could be of service. I don't think they'll be pulling out of the agreement anytime soon. It would make them lose face."

"What do you think about hiring one of their crescent tattooed warriors to help seal the deal? There are always opportunities to use someone who enjoys killing people."

"That sounds like a good idea. Let's pick Uan though. I'm not that comfortable having Malcolm around."

"Sure I'll see what the chief thinks and make it happen."

"See you on the ship," stated Phoebe walking off.

"Okay Phoebe. Enjoy the festivities," replied Chaell.
Chapter 11

Yoyo joins the Euclidian

The next day, Commander Filo and Yoyo found themselves at the Bordelle Bar once again waiting for other contacts from the Euclidian resource ship fleet.

"Have you and Jesmino been enjoying the city?" Asked Commander Filo.

"Very much so," replied Yoyo. "This is a very new experience for us. As you know Tammaria is mostly a primitive planet with no technology except for what was brought to the planet by visitors. This place is more beautiful, exciting and even dangerous than I could ever have imagined. Interacting with the different species has been eye opening for us.

"Any luck connecting with the Euclidians?"

"Not by me, but Jesmino has learned the language and has been connecting with a few people. No meaningful contacts as of yet though."

"Just keep trying. I'm sure the two of you will make a breakthrough eventually. Jesmino impresses me with her progress. Or is she a he? I'm not really sure."

"To tell you the truth, neither am I. She appears to be a female, but I've never seen her in the bathroom or shower. Come to think of it, I've never seen her eat either. She's a strange one. Pretty smart though."

"Look Yoyo. Another Euclidian captain just walked in the door and he's coming this way. Let me look him up on my UCD. It's Captain Lohmann, skipper of the resource ship _Aleecia_ and he's sitting at the next booth. I'm going to order a Tammarian grog for him."

After a few moments a server walks up to the captain's booth with the drink. "Excuse me sir. This is from your neighbor in the booth next to you."

"Really, I'll have to offer my thanks," said the captain getting up. "Oh an Alpha. What is it you want?" The captain said sharply.

"Please, just a moment of your time sir and I'll leave you in peace.

The captain sat next to Yoyo and Commander Filo began pleading his case to join the captain's crew.

"Captain I have served as navigator on three different Alpha ships and a Delta freighter."

"You mean a freighter that was commandeered by your people," scoffed the captain.

"That's inconsequential. I had nothing to do with the acquisition of the ship. I was just there to plot its courses."

"You mean you were helping to steal their technology. Thanks for the grog. I'll be moving to a booth where the air is less putrid."

"Yoyo, convince him that we would be good crewmembers," urged the commander. "Think of life aboard a spaceship and all the places we would visit. Please wait just a moment captain."

Yoyo thought about it and decided to help Commander Filo. She pulled off her goggles and pulled on the captain's sleep keeping him in the booth. The captain looked over at Yoyo and couldn't stop staring at her glowing eyes.

"Please stay for a while," Yoyo said gently to the captain. "The commander would make an excellent member of your crew. You should make him your navigator and I would be happy to work in one of the ships entertainment areas."

"That sounds reasonable," replied captain, "but I already have a navigator."

"I'm sure he would love to move to logistics or another department on your ship. Your ship would really benefit from having Commander Filo as your navigator."

"The crew is going to hate having an Alpha on the bridge," the captain said shaking his head. "I'm just not sure I could make that work."

"Be persuasive captain. Be forceful. You are a strong supporter of inclusion and assimilation. Let it show."

"Okay, you've convinced me. Show me your UCDs."

The two presented their UCDs to Captain Lohmann and he used his UCD to encode theirs with a digital crewmember attribute designating their new positions on his ship.

"You two are now members of my crew. Get your gear and press your crewmember button when you are ready to board. You will be beamed directly to the indoctrination center. Once your indoctrination is complete Yoyo will be assigned to one of our many bars and you will be assigned to the bridge. I suggest that you two stay in your cabins until I have arrived to introduce you. Now if you don't mind I'd like to enjoy some of this establishment's wares before heading back to the ship," the captain said standing up.

"Certainly captain. We are honored to be members of your crew."

"Welcome aboard gentlemen and adieu."

The two stood as the captain walked off. Commander Filo startled Yoyo by giving her a huge hug.

"I'm excited too commander," sad Yoyo, "but I don't think hugging is necessary."

"Whatever you say little lady. Let's get back to our temporary housing, collect our things and get aboard our new ship. In the mean time we'll have to find a way to keep Jesmino busy while we are away."

"Don't worry I'll take care of it."

Later that night Yoyo met with Jesmino.

"Jesmino, Commander Filo and I have taken a position aboard one of the Euclidian resource ships. I want you to stay here and look at forming a relationship with the Euclidians. I will continue to be in touch with you via your UCD."

"Okay Yoyo. I think I will be just fine here. If you don't mind I'll stay connected to you at the subatomic level."

"Sure Jesmino, whatever you say. Forgive me for asking, but are you male or female?"

"Which would you prefer?"

"A female, but it doesn't quire work like that."

"At some levels it can. I am most certainly a female."

"Okay, glad to hear it. Commander Filo and I are packed and ready to depart. We'll be leaving any minute and will hopefully be back in a few months. Just ping me if you need anything."

"I will and you do the same."

"Goodbye Jesmino," Yoyo said walking out. Jesmino simply waved at the closing door.

_Being a female Magi is not so bad_ , Jesmino said to herself. _It would probably be more effective connecting with the Euclidian if I were a female Euclidian though_ , Jesmino stated in perfect Euclidian, while changing shape and the sound of her voice.

***

Yoyo joined Commander Filo in his apartment and simultaneously they pressed on the crewmember buttons on their UCD. In an instant, they were sitting in chairs in the indoctrination center aboard the _Aleecia_ waiting for the next session to start. Yoyo almost exploded with delight.

"Hello everyone, I'm Lieutenant Langford the personnel officer. I'm here to indoctrinate you to the finer points of the resource ship _Aleecia_. Your UCDs have been updated to include the ship's layout including your places of work and sleep. Just command it to "map location" to get a layout of the current deck and then ask it where you want to go. This ship is very large. Over fifty kilometers in each direction. You will want to take the personnel transports to get to most locations. The entrances to the transport areas are marked by mauve-colored lights. They transports can move vertically and horizontally. Follow the rules and don't go to areas in which you don't belong. The first time you are caught you will get a warning and fined. The second time you will be thrown off the ship and I don't mean at the next port either. You'll be thrown into space! And that's not a joke. Beaming is not allowed on the ship except by executive order. Now sit back and watch the video screen for a general explanation of shipboard life. When the video is over go out this door and make a right down the hallway. The door at the end will take you out to the ship's principal corridor. Turn left or right to the mauve-colored tubes to a transport."

The video started and a much more pleasant voice gave a description of the ship and all its conveniences. It also gave a calendar of the upcoming mission along with another warning about following the rules. Once it was finished most people filed out to find their living quarters to get settled. Commander Filo and Yoyo stayed back with a few others to ask additional questions.

"Excuse me Lieutenant," started Filo, "can you tell me how to access a flight simulator for the ship? I'm the new navigator and I'd like to brush up on the ship's controls."

"An Alpha navigator?!" Replied the lieutenant, "That's awfully strange. I bet they're going to love you on the bridge."

"The simulator lieutenant?" Commander Filo asked agitated.

"When you get to your stateroom there will be a virtual command table with a screen above it which you can use to load any of the bridge's systems because of your position on the ship. Just give it voice commands to enable the desired simulation."

"Thanks lieutenant."

"So what do you want?" The lieutenant asked Yoyo.

"You assigned me to a general crews lounge. Would it be possible to get assigned to an officer's lounge?"

"No you may not. You just got here. Do what you're told."

"Please sir," begged Yoyo taking off her goggles, "place me in one of the officer's lounges." I so much want to show them my talents."

"Okay you little cutey. I'll move you to our most happening officer's lounge."

"Yay," replied Yoyo clapping her hands and smiling.

"Stop showing off," whispered Commander Filo nudging her as they walked out. "We don't want to draw attention to ourselves. You might want to change out of that thick, hooded robe and goggles. It will look odd on this ship."

"Don't worry; I got some comfortable fashion during our stay in Occum. I plan to try them out tonight in the lounge."

"Unfortunately, I won't be able to join you tonight. I'll be busy learning about the Euclidian multi-dimensional drive. I'll probably stay out of sight until the captain introduces me. I think it would be safer that way. Will you be okay in the lounge?"

"I'm already adept at making Tammarian Grog, which most people will be drinking. I'm sure I will learn how to mix the other drinks quite quickly."

The two of them stepped into the corridor and were amazed by the size of the space and how full of life it was. The hall was thirty meters wide and disappeared into the distance in both directions. The walls and floor were bright white. Above them was an animated ceiling that simulated the Euclidian sun shining through and its three moons. At night the ceiling depicted the night sky. Crewmembers overhead flew by in elevated chairs with no visible means of suspension.

Passersby sneered and gawked as they walked by Commander Filo. Yoyo was looked upon as an oddity, which she found amusing, considering all the strange life forms walking, slithering and floating by.

"Enjoy yourself Yoyo. I'm heading for the transport and the privacy of my stateroom."

"Bye. I'm going to try out one of those transport chairs", Yoyo pointed as one whizzed by above their heads. "Excuse me, how do I catch one of those chairs flying by overhead?" Yoyo asked a passerby in the corridor.

"You simply push one of the brown buttons on the wall over there by the pink light," he replied. "A chair will pop out. Place the chair in the direction you want to go, sit in the char and strap in. When you are ready, press the blue button to engage the chair and the yellow button to disengage it. Lean forward to speed up and lean back to slow down. Lean to one side in the chair to turn it. Turning in your chair will take you down hallways or in the opposite direction."

"How do people keep from colliding into each other?"

"Not to worry. The system takes care of that. It makes sure the chairs don't collide no matter what you do."

"Thank you so kindly for the assistance."

"Your UCD has the same information. You only have to ask it."

"So I shall," replied Yoyo nodding to the crewmember as she left.

Yoyo walked over by the far wall and pressed on the brown button with trepidation not knowing quite what to expect. After she pressed the button a chair popped from the wall. She pointed it towards the aft end of the ship and took a seat. The chair was a bit large for her, but she didn't let it discourage her. She strapped herself in and pressed the blue button. For a moment nothing happened, and then the chair shot up into the air and leapt forward next to the other travelers."

"Whee!" Yoyo exclaimed. The others around her smiled and nodded. She leaned forward to gain speed and found it simply exhilarating. The people below and the colored light tubes looked like a blur below her. On occasion the chair would shift from side to side to avoid other travelers. Yoyo sat back a bit to catch her breath and noticed a bunch of people in front of her turning left down a hallway. She leaned left and followed them around the corner to a narrow hallway. The hallway was dimly lit with large windows along each wall. The chairs had mostly slowed to a stop as the passengers observed what was going on inside the rooms beyond the windows. This was obviously the sports arenas for the ship. There were swimmers, acrobats, runners and animal riders of all types. Yoyo was in awe of the exotic animals that were being ridden inside the arenas. The animals weren't just ones from Euclidia, but from many worlds. There were two, three, four and six-legged beasts of all shapes and sizes.

Some rooms were reserved for sports and others for battle practice. Small armies in make shift jungles attacked each other with laser weapons. Not the toy kind, but the kind that cause real harm. Luckily the infirmary was able to put everyone back together, though the injuries were still very painful.

The sports arenas contained various types of sports activities. Most of them included a ball of some sort. There were also several competitive sports that pitted teams and individuals against each other in feats of strength, speed, agility and the ability to work together as teams. Some events were organized. Many were ad-hoc. There were even Olympic-type events where cities, nations and planets competed against each other for money and trophies.

While the ship was docked in orbit around the home planet of Euclidia the arenas were full of crewmembers. There wasn't a lot else to do. The captain encouraged there use as it helped to keep the crew out of trouble.

Yoyo lingered by the large windows looking on in amazement. She had never seen much in the way of sports growing up. Even during brief trips out of the cave on Tammaria or traveling around with Commander Filo did not gain her access to many activities outside the bars, clubs and restaurants they visited.

Being short and inexperienced, she did not see many sports that she thought she could do well. However, across one of the large fields in a corner she saw a group of people engaged in an activity that she felt she was born to do.

Yoyo pushed the yellow button on the chair in hopes that it would put her down safely. The chair moved over the nearest chair transport area and settled slowly onto the floor next to it. Yoyo descended from the chair and it immediately disappeared into the wall.

Yoyo walked along the corridor to an orange tube light, which indicated the entrance to a sports arena. She pulled open the door and the strong smell of sweat hit her in the face. She gagged at the strong scent, but plowed forward. After a while her nose adjusted to the smell and her desire to puke subsided. She was in a corridor between playing fields that was made of a metal-based glass that protected visitors from athletes and their equipment. There were doors every few meters to provide access to the fields. She walked to the end of the corridor where people were standing around waiting for their turn at the wall.

Yoyo stared through the window for a minute, a bit nervous about going in. She looked at each person take a turn and knew she could best any of them. She had never socialized with many people off planet except for Commander Filo and a few people back in Occum. Though she was suspicious of his intentions, he was the only friend she had.

Yoyo gritted her teeth and pushed her way through the door into the arena. She got in line with the rest of the participants to wait her turn.

"Hey shorty," a person in line shouted at Yoyo. "Are you going to climb the wall in that big robe?" He asked laughing.

"He is probably going to ride someone's back up. How can he even see where he is with those goofy goggles he's wearing," said another by stander.

"First of all numbnuts," started Yoyo taking off her robe and tossing it to the ground, "I'm a woman. Secondly, I'm wearing goggles because my eyes are sensitive to the light, but they also help protect me from your bullshit. Which takes me to my third point. I'm going to let you two get half way up before starting and when you get to the top you will see my ass waiting for you."

The two looked on in amazement at Yoyo's strong wiry body. She had extra-long fingers and toes, which helped her climb the cave walls back home all her life. Thick, shoulder-length, wavy white hair flowed from her head. She was wearing the tight brown leotards that she wore while in her caves. Though she didn't have breasts, her body was curvaceous, and the two men noticed. She tightened her arms in a wrestling pose and made a growl at the two men.

The two sort of stepped back and then laughed. She laughed too.

"You have an impressive little body, but nonetheless, you are not going to beat us up this wall unless you use some magic or technology.

"I promise you no tricks I'm going to beat you the old fashioned way. With my talent!"

"Okay, if we win you do an exotic dance for us."

"Sure, and if I win you two do one for me."

"Bet!"

"Okay, see the spot where the person in the blue shorts is?" Asked Yoyo.

"Yea, we see it." One of them responded.

"You can have until there before I start."

"You're nuts lady. No way can you catch us after that."

"Then you have nothing to worry about do you? Your time is up. Get going suckers."

The three validated their bets with their UCDs and the two men started up the wall. This was not one of the fake rock walls like on the planet Earth, but a real rock face taken from the surface of Euclidia. People climbed without a rope. When some climbers fell and they occasionally did, a gravity system kept them from hitting the ground, though some did scrape themselves up on the rock face on the way down. They would sometimes take others out on the way down.

Yoyo watched with eagerness as the two climbers ascended on the rock face. When they finally hit the halfway point she started her ascent after them. Now she was a bit worried. Though some of the climbers seemed slow, these two were pretty fast.

Yoyo used her strength to pull herself up and her long fingers and toes to grasp cracks and crevices in the rock face. She created a rhythm with her body, swinging herself from side to side and up the rock face.

"Do you see her anywhere?" Asked on of the two men Yoyo was racing.

"No, I think we beat her. I'm looking forward to that sexy dance from that sweet little thing tonight," said the other man.

"I'm looking forward to a sexy dance myself," smiled Yoyo just above them. "Although I wouldn't call you two sweet little things. I should be at work around 7:50. Don't disappoint me boys."

***

Commander Filo settled into his quarters. As a Lieutenant Commander on the ship he was in an area of the ship restricted to senior officers. The area had a private lounge, club, kitchen, game room and exercise area. His quarters consisted of a two-room suite with a receiving room for meetings and a large bedroom with an office area. His virtual command table is what he was most interested in.

Commander Filo sat in front of his desk placing his UCD on a spot marked for it. It caused a graphical menu to appear on the desk top. He could select commands from the menu with his hand or just say what he wanted using verbal commands.

"Bring up the navigation console," Commander Filo commanded. The desktop responded by converting to a simulation of the ship's navigation console.

"Chart a course to the Alpha system and put us in orbit around the fourth planet from their sun."

"Course plotted," responded the navigation system. It displayed the ship's current location and the path to its destination in compressed format as a hologram above the table.

"Initiate course on my command. Initiate!"

Commander Filo executed the scenario several times paying attention to all the changes he made to each setting of the navigation system. Though it took him hours, he felt compelled to learn every nuance about the system. When he felt he was ready he performed the navigation manually several times tweaking things here and there to learn the limits of the system as well as its failsafes.

Commander Filo fell asleep with his face against his desk. He awoke with thoughts about how he would seek his revenge against the Euclidian. He stood up wiping the saliva from his mouth and sleep from his eyes. He dragged himself to his elegant bathroom. He sat on the toilet and relieved himself. As he permitted the warm jet spray to rinse his bottom his thoughts once again drifted to revenge against the people that he now served. He must hit them hard in a way that will cause them to remember his name forever. He let the warm air dry his bottom and then stepped into the surround shower. Hot, tingling jets hit every part of his body. He let his mind relax and drift to the memory of his sweet wife and three kids that were killed during the Euclidian attack. He touched himself as he had not been touched since her death. He climaxed and cried slipping to the bottom of the shower.

Soon Euclidians! Soon you will feel the wrath of Kenyon Filo!

***

It was just about 7:30 and Yoyo was putting the final touches on her hairdo. She had parted her white silky hair into squares and tied the strands from each square into a single knot. Her hair still hung 10 centimeters from each knot. She dyed the tips of her hair pink to match the tight pink outfit that hugged her body. Her bare arms and midriff showed off her muscular physique.

Yoyo had sparkling blue fifteen centimeter pumps that glowed when she stomped them on the floor. Yoyo spent several nights with Belo at his dance club in Occum after spending the day with Commander Filo waiting for one of his four contacts to show up. She loved the music, lights, dancing, wild clothes and people from across the universe having fun together. It certainly beat her dark caves. She wasn't much of a dancer, but enjoyed seeing people jump across the multiple levitating, revolving dance floors.

Yoyo eventually got the nerve up to ask Belo to let her operate the electronics and music mood at his club. It was the one thing that could not be computerized. The music and ambience had to change with the audience, which came from many cultures across countless star systems. Deltas were different from Ossies who were nothing like Perjorans, who were unique from her own people. Yoyo had to especially be on the lookout for Alphas walking into the club. No levitating floors or flashing lights when they were around. Nothing that might get people excited. Just low lights, mellow music and the establishment's exotic dancers to keep everyone distracted from wanting to kill the Alphas. There wasn't one species that they hadn't gone to war with except the Majorellens. They were too far out at the far end of the galaxy for the Alphas to bother going after.

The Ossies were the only species that came out on top in a war with the Alphas. The Alphas only sent a few ships and were unprepared for the Ossies ability to cloak and their relentless fighting style. An Ossie snuck aboard their command ship, killed everyone on the bridge and then flew the ship into the ground while chanting a fighting song over the ship's PA system.

Yoyo enjoyed learning the subtleties of the job and as she learned from Belo how to be a great techno slinger. She eventually added her own style into the mix. On occasion she would use her powers of persuasion to get the pole dancers at the club to do group dances similar to the cave exercises Yoyo used to do, which brought in a lot more customers to the club. This was noticed by the manager who decided to give Yoyo a paid job at the club.

"Yoyo, you are fabulous on the electronic controls and getting people to dance," said the manager. But you have got to find some hipper threads. I can't tell if you're a man or a woman under that robe you wear all the time.

"Thanks, I really appreciate the job. What do you think of these?" Asked Yoyo taking off her robe and exposing the tight, brown clothes she usually wore in the caves.

"Better. I like the tight fit, but the style is still a bit boring."

"Okay, after my first paycheck I'll get some new clothes."

In her free time Yoyo went to several of the dance clubs across town to see what other techno slingers were rockin. After going through ten or so clubs, she figured out what she wanted to wear.

She could hardly wait for her first paycheck and ran out and bought some clothes, makeup and dye for her hair. She didn't tell Commander Filo because she wanted to surprise him, though the surprise would have to wait. When she got back to the room where she was staying with him, he was waiting for her with news.

"Yoyo, I have great news. I received a message from our new ship. They are ready to transfer us at any time. Our indoctrination starts in four hours. We should get packed and check out of here. I don't want to be late."

"Okay let me tell my boss that I won't be back."

"Sure, just make it quick."

Yoyo activated her UCD, which was still new to her. "Call my boss," she requested. Moments later she saw his face on the screen.

"Hi Yoyo, what do you need?"

"I'm about to ship out and I won't be back."

"Too bad. We are all going to miss you here. I'll send your last payment to your account and you should see it on your UCD tonight. Safe travels."

"Thanks, out!"

***

Yoyo took a deep breath and walked out of the door of her small cabin to take a transport to the officer's lounge where she was assigned. Yoyo stood in front of the door to the lounge fretting. _You can do this Yoyo. You're just wearing normal clothes for a techno slinger._ She said to herself. _Though you've never worn anything but boring cave clothes, you can do this._

A couple of crewmembers brushed past her into the lounge and she followed them in. She walked behind the bar and introduced herself to the man standing there.

"Hello, I'm Yoyo reporting for duty."

"Greetings Yoyo, I'm Jorré. You don't have to be so formal. A simple _I'm here_ would suffice. I hope you're not going to wear that huge robe every day."

"I have an outfit underneath the robe; I'm just not used to being in public without my robe."

"If you want to keep working here you are going to have to be liked by the patrons. Otherwise, you will be sent to a less popular lounge making less money. And that would be a lot less fun if you ask me."

"No, I would rather stay here. This place is spectacular," Yoyo said looking around at the huge room. There were digital lights, big screens pervasive music, game tables and one levitating dance floor. The floor was empty, but Yoyo hoped to fix that.

"Where can I put my robe?" Yoyo asked removing her robe and exposing her sexy outfit. She was wearing a tight pink top with a swirl design, tight pink shorts, glitter shades to protect her eyes and matching glitter shoes that glowed when she walked.

"Wow, you won't have any problems attracting attention with that outfit."

"You like it?" Yoyo asked shyly.

"Very much so. If we were a more compatible species I would be trying to get you out of those sexy clothes, except for the shoes of course."

Yoyo blushed. "I'm not sure if I should thank you or slap your face."

"Oh I guess I was being a bit provocative, but not any more than your outfit. You can place your robe over there then get acquainted with the bar. Most people will order drinks and food from their UCD, but others like a personal touch and you need to be ready for that."

"Got it," replied Yoyo hanging up her robe and starting her tour through the bar area. _Dang, they have a lot of liquor and snacks back here._

"Jorré, I tended bar on occasion back in Occum, but how do I figure out how to use all these different liquors in drinks?"

"Point your UCD at a container of liquor. It will describe the contents, of the container, the different types of drinks you can make with it as well as how to make them. Now that you are inside the lounge you can use the room icon on your UCD to get info on the lounge. Press it to bring up the menu and then select the _drinks_ command. You can select a drink from the list or just say its name. Then you have the option of ordering the drink or obtaining the recipe for making the drink. Since you work here you can come behind the bar, click the _recipe_ command and the containers holding the ingredients for the recipe will light up. Don't worry about how much to pour of each ingredient, the container will automatically determine that."

"What if we are both making a drink at the same time?"

"The containers are smart enough to know that you are reaching for the container and extinguish the light or pour the right amount of liquor for the drink you selected."

"Doesn't that make it easy for anyone to be a bartender?"

"Yes, but the way to be a great bartender is to understand the specific needs of your clients. Plus adding your own flair to drinks will get you special attention."

That last statement lit a light bulb for Yoyo and she thought about how she could make the Tammarian grog special. _I bet the moss that grows in our caves would be just the thing that our grog needs. When it dries out it can be used as a swizzle stick. Somehow the grog brings out its flavor in a way that excites people. I can't believe I only brought a small container with me. Hopefully the moss, my outfit and techno slinger abilities will secure my position here._

Yoyo knew her small container of moss would not last her very long so she contacted one of her friends back on Occum to get her an additional supply.

"Belo, this is Yoyo. I know you are going to Tammaria tomorrow. Get me a bushel of the cave moss."

"What cave moss?" Asked Belo.

"The shooters that we use in the grog."

"Wow, I never thought of bringing any with me. I'll get some for you and have it transferred to you in a couple of days."

"Great, I'll transfer fifty credits to you as soon as I get them."

"No, you'll give me a private techno dance when you get back from your mission."

"What? I'd rather give you one hundred credits!"

"I'd rather get two private dances."

"Argh! You're worse than the men at the Bordelle Bar."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Sure, but if you touch me I will crush your face."

"I miss you too and look forward to your return," Belo ended with a smirk.

It was 7:70 and the two men that lost the bet to Yoyo walked into the door of the lounge. _This is going to be a fun evening_ , Yoyo thought.

"Hello gentlemen," greeted Yoyo. "I'm surprised you two showed up."

"We are not ones to welch on a bet," one of the men responded. "Plus it was recorded in our UCD so it would be difficult to ignore the obligation."

"Glad to hear it. Why don't you two put on these hot pink thongs under your clothes and come back at 7:90. I'll let everyone know you'll be dancing starting at 8:00."

"You must be kidding lady. I'm not wearing that or stripping."

"Me either you little rip-off artist."

Yoyo raised her glitter glasses and addressed the two. "Gentlemen, do I look like someone who enjoys being ignored? You get dressed in those thongs like I asked you to and be back by 7:90. Understood?!"

"Yes Yoyo," they replied in unison.

After the two left Yoyo sent the announcement about the planned entertainment and finished familiarizing herself with her drink station. Once she was comfortable with making drinks, she placed herself online and awaited for her first drink order to arrive. It took a while for the first one, but soon the drink orders started coming in.

"Hey lady, I'll have a Marnician hinsar juice."

"Can I get a Pushan ball blaster?"

"Get me a Chasen brain stun."

"Hi cutey. Could you make me a fresh Tammarian grog?"

"Yes! I'd be happy to sir," said Yoyo with glee. _The moment I've been waiting for_. "Here you go sir."

"What's this bit here?" Asked the patron.

"It's a Tam stick from the Tammarian caves. You stir the grog with it and then suck on it."

"Really? That sounds a bit odd," said the patron. "Why didn't you just give me a straw," he said walking off.

"Hmph," sounded Yoyo crossing her arms annoyed by the patron's statement. However, a few seconds later he came back raving about the extra flavor and sensation that the Tam stick gave the drink.

"What is this thing you gave me? The patron asked. "It's quite yummy."

"It's a Tam stick from the caves of Tammaria. You can only get it from me and it only works with drinks made with the Tammarian abbig fruit such as Tammarian grog. The stick should last you a couple of days depending on how much you drink."

"Can I get another one?"

"Sorry, only one per customer. It should last you a while though. Next week you will be able to buy as many as you like."

"Thanks barmaid."

"The name's Yoyo."

"Yoyo it is then."

He spread the word about the Tam sticks and within thirty minutes her supply was depleted. Just in time for Yoyo to greet the two climbers in their sexy dancing outfits. Now Yoyo was going to liven up the place. She put on a headset microphone and addressed the patrons in the lounge.

"Hello everyone. Can I have your attention up here on the floating dance floor? These two gentlemen in the sexy outfits lost a bet earlier today and are now going to demonstrate their version of a techno dance. Let's hear it for them," Yoyo ended clapping.

"Aye, aye, aye," everyone responded clapping.

Yoyo jumped to the control center and turned up the music, which was the Euclidian version of techno disco. She turned on the quartz lights that sparkled around the room. As the men started to dance she levitated the dance floor up and down, which had rarely been used. The crowd hooted and hollered as the two men awkwardly stripped to their G-strings. When the music died down yoyo took to the stage.

"Let's hear it for these fabulous gentlemen. Next time they won't go challenging Tammarians to climbing contests because we rule! Now I'm going to show how to do the techno dance right. Of course a clean version. I need six volunteers, three women and men or hermaphrodites. If you have a Tam stick you are compelled to come up here."

The stage and surrounding dance floor quickly filled with people. Yoyo cranked up the music and levitated the dance floor. She popped up on the stage with ease and addressed her dancers.

"Change of plans everyone. There are so many of you let's do the Tammarian cave walk. Don't worry if you don't know it you'll learn quickly. Everyone that finishes it with me gets a free Tam stick when my shipment comes in."

Suddenly even more dancers came to the floor.

_I'm definitely going to need more dance space,_ Yoyo thought "Okay everybody line up and do what I do in beat with the music. Lean forward and put your hands on both of your thighs. Take two steps forward and shake your hips from side to side. With your right foot slide yourself across the floor. Twist to the left, raise your left foot and slide some more. Hop back once. Hop front twice and spin around. Spin your hips to the left then to their right now drop it down. Now cave walk everybody. Cave walk. Lean forward and put your hands on both of your thighs..."

Yoyo had the club bangin'. She completely forgot about her drinking duties, but her boss didn't care.

Chapter 12

Saved from the Bayou

Uan, Betty and Dominique lay face down on the floor of the reconnaissance ship soak and wet, coughing up water. Grunting laughter could be heard coming from the background around them. The two women looked around for the source of the noise and started screaming when they saw the Euclidian crewmen. The screaming made the crewmen laugh all that much harder, which made them seem more menacing to the two women.

"Ahhh, who are those monsters and where the hell are we?" Screamed Dominique holding onto Betty.

"It appears that we have been abducted by Uan's colleagues. I had my suspicions that he was an alien and this confirms it. He's probably going to kill us with his spear now."

"Oh my goodness, you're right," said Dominique taking a closer look at Uan. "How did I not recognize it before? Does this mean I won't get my thousand dollars or get my limousine replaced?"

"Stop it!" Shouted Uan. "You'll get your money and you can have any car you like. Furthermore, if I wanted to kill you why would I save you from the alligators?"

"Because you want to stab us yourself to make sure that we are dead," replied Betty. "Or maybe you want your friends to do it."

"I do not want to stab you and neither do my colleagues. They are here to help me find an escaped alien. They beamed us from the bayou away from the alligators. I was able to send them a request with my universal connection device before they came after me."

" _Were you able to retrieve my UCD_?" Uan asked the crewmembers.

One of the crewmembers nodded to Uan and tossed it to him. Uan caught it and nodded back to her.

" _Could you tend to their wounds_?" Uan asked.

One of them nodded and used a device to seal the wound on Dominique's arm.

" _This one is okay now. The other one doesn't seem to be harmed, just wet_ ," the crewman snickered.

Betty turned away from the crewman and faced Uan. "You've been killing people all across DC with your spear haven't you," accused Betty.

"They were bad people and deserved to die," responded Uan.

"Really?! What about the headless corpse found on the riverfront?"

"He littered."

"That is usually not a capital offense."

"He caught me at the wrong moment. I had the escaped alien in my grasp and he used his powers to wrap me in some cloth and throw me in the water. I just hate being in the water unless I am bathing. It stings my eyes and makes me feel helpless."

"If you want to call those slits you have eyes," stated Dominique starring.

"They are what I use to see with."

Uan didn't have eyeballs like most humanoid creatures. He had slits that went from the front of his head and running along the side providing him with a more than a 180 degree view of his surroundings.

"Why are you trying so hard to capture this creature? I bet he's not running around stabbing people in the chest with a spear," exclaimed Betty.

"He escaped from our resource extraction ship _Andrea_. He has special powers like telepathy and telekinesis. We are afraid that he will warn your planet about our presence."

"Why don't you just introduce yourselves like you must have done on other planets?" Asked Dominique agitated.

"This is not a friendly visit. We are here to extract minerals and people from the planet. Introducing ourselves would be a waste of time."

"Why did you leave your quest to save Betty?" Asked Dominique. "Are you in love with Betty?"

Uan just growled in response.

"Of course not," interjected Betty. "He's an emotionless assassin. He just probably wants me to tie him to a bed again a few more times before he gets bored and kills me. Maybe he kept you alive because he wants a threesome."

"Now you are being absurd. I have feelings for you Betty. That is why I risked my life to save you."

"Uan, do you want us to drop you three off somewhere?" One of the crewmembers jumped in.

"Sure, just send us all to my place. I'll be in touch later," replied Uan.

A moment later they were all standing in Uan's living room with their clothes still soaked.

"My gosh, I wish you would stop doing that," exclaimed Dominique. "At least give us a warning before you beam us around."

"No kidding," added Betty.

"What happened to you three?" Asked Calvin sitting up from the couch. "It looks like you were trying to find Nemo and got lost yourselves."

"Are you an alien too?" Asked Dominique.

"No, that's Uan's valet," responded Betty.

"Hold on, I'm no one's valet and I'm certainly not an alien. I'm Uan's associate. I help him get around."

"So you help him kill people," said Betty.

"Trust me, Uan doesn't need any help with that."

"What I do need help with is getting these ladies some dry clothes if you are finished with the chit chat," demanded Uan. "And tell Little Randy I want to see him.

"Got it!" Calvin stated turning and walking away.

"Ladies if you will come with me," stated Uan, "there are a couple of bedrooms with bathrooms that you can use to clean up. They each have towels and toiletries in them. Calvin should be back soon with clothes for you. I'll be in my room taking a shower."

Uan went into his room, showered and put on some fresh clothes. Soon there was a knock on his door.

"Uan!" Calvin shouted through the closed door. "Little Randy is out here with a few of his fellas."

"I will be right there," replied Uan.

"Got it," stated Calvin returning to the living room where the group was waiting.

Out of nowhere Uan just appeared, without his shades or hoody, startling the group. He had his spear in his right hand with the tip pointed downward in a menacing fashion.

"Whose idea was it to turn my friend over to the Italians?" Uan stated bearing his sharp teeth. The fear across the four was palpable.

Little Randy spoke up. "She was a cop that was sneaking around spying on you. If she was your friend why was she hiding behind a tree watching your place instead of just knocking on your door."

"Did you even ask her?"

"She had a chance to speak up and said nothing," Little Randy pleaded.

"Fine. From now on, people who visit me are protected. You figure out if they know me or not."

"No problem. So we good?" Asked Little Randy.

"Almost," replied Uan then thrust his spear into the chest of the man standing on Little Randy's left. "Now we good."

"Uan, did you have to kill my boy?!"

"If the loss of your friend is causing you mental duress I am happy to relieve you of that feeling," stated Uan leaning into Little Randy and cocking his head to the side.

"No, I'm good," stated Little Randy throwing his hands up.

"Good. Now take that bleeding corpse out of here. He is messing up my carpet. Next time I call for you, you come alone. Crowds make me nervous."

"No problem. That won't happen again."

With that Uan turned and vanished into thin air.

"Shit! What kind of crap is that?" Said one of Little Randy's associates. "Is he some kind of ghost or something?"

"Oh no," stated Calvin. "A ghost is just scary. Uan is terrifying to the point that he doesn't even have a shadow. They're afraid to be around him."

"Why aren't you afraid?"

"Oh I am. Every minute of every day. So far he's been good to me so I'm going to be good to him. And one thing's for sure. None of you are ever going to mess with me as long as he's around. I suggest you get going before he comes back. He's not a patient kind of guy if you know what I mean. And I think you do."

The three grabbed their dead friend and walked out without uttering another word.

"Calvin, did you get the clothes I told you to get?" Uan asked.

"Yes, I put them in their respective bedrooms."

"You know we still have that little alien and his Earthling friend to deal with."

"Yes, I remember. I just don't know why he continues to be important. He doesn't seem to want to cause any trouble."

"Ours is not to reason why, ours is just to do or die."

"Where did you learn that one?"

"They taught me a few English colloquialisms during my language training."

"But they didn't teach you contractions. That's a hoot."

"Just go start the SUV up. I will be down in a minute. I want to let the ladies know that they should stay put."

"Okay, I'll be waiting for you outside."

Uan walked into a bedroom where Betty and Dominique were chatting. "Betty and Dominique, Calvin and I are going to look for the missing alien. The invasion is imminent. You will be safe as long as you stay here, so do not leave."
Chapter 13

Li Xiao spots Uan

Li Xiao was using her transport device to follow the Chinese ambassador around, trying to determine if his guest, the visiting Chinese Defense Secretary, would eventually discuss where they were keeping Yao Ming. He was recently captured and being held in an undisclosed location for speaking out against the government. She wasn't much of a basketball fan, but she knew who he was. All the other people she had freed were Chinese dissidents who had never been to America. Yao Ming was a national hero and an American basketball legend.

Freeing the other dissidents was not very worrisome to her as she did not get much media coverage. The Chinese were being careful about not turning her into a heroine. Helping Yao Ming to escape would bring her international attention, which might become dangerous to her ability to remain anonymous.

As she watched the pair ride around DC in their limousine she listened carefully, but unfortunately they were only discussing the DC sites and where to get great Szechuan food.

_The limousine is stopping. Why would they be stopping here? Not the tourist bus. Now I guess I will spend the next two hours listening to you two rattle on about monuments and not Yao Ming_!

The two men exited their limo, purchased tickets and climbed aboard a double-decker bus. They took a seat on the top near the front. As the bus continued its tour Li Yao was forced to endure more inane banter about the monuments they were passing. The Chinese ambassador took great pleasure in showing off his knowledge of DC.

Li Xiao noticed something odd happen as they went under an overpass. From out of nowhere a kid floated down into the bus. Since he landed in the back no one seemed to notice.

Where did he come from, how did he float down and why was he carrying that strange doll in his quiver. _Wait a minute. That doll is moving_! Li Xiao switched her focus from the two men she was following to this mysterious kid and his doll.

The two appeared to be communicating with each other, but their mouths weren't moving. As a matter of fact, the small creature didn't even have a mouth. They looked over the back of the bus as if they were watching something. Li Xiao zoomed out the image on her device to see what they were looking at. It appeared that someone was chasing the bus. Not only that, the person was catching the bus, which must have been moving at about thirty miles an hour.

_The fastest human can barely run fifteen miles per hour. How is this person doing this?_ She thought. Li Xiao zoomed in on the person and determined that he couldn't be human, but what was an alien doing on Earth? _He must be chasing the little creature the kid was carrying, who has to be an alien as well. They have to be from Cobalt's ship, which means this has something to do with the impending invasion. While I would love to free Yao Ming, this development is probably more important._

Li Xiao followed the trio as they switched to a tourist boat. They split up after the kid and the small alien caught a hot air balloon and the alien chasing them was dragged under water. Li Xiao decided to place a waypoint on Morgan and the alien. She decided that the alien would be more interesting to follow around.

The alien came up out of the water near an entertainment area and beheaded a man, apparently for littering. She followed him back to his residence and saw that he was working with an American. She later laughed as the alien apparently became drunk after drinking barely half a beer and was being beaten up at a bar and was later tied to a bed and dominated by a policewoman.

_This is some strange stuff that you just can't make up,_ she thought. The policewoman was later captured and then freed by the alien named Uan. _I can't figure out if this alien is a good guy or bad guy. He certainly has a mean temper. He seems to want to kill the little alien and his American friend so they won't warn Earth_.

Li Xiao's eyes were glued to her device as she tracked Uan and Calvin as they went to Tajikistan to retrieve some plutonium from some terrorists. She added another waypoint to the ship so she could track it as needed. She was surprised that her tracking device could follow Uan even after he had been beamed back and forth to the ship.

_I wonder why the American or foreign military can't spot their spaceship_? _I guess taking plutonium from terrorists is a good thing, but I just don't trust these aliens. I better get some sleep. I can check on them in the morning_.

Chapter 14

The Mining of Earth Begins

"Captain, we are in position above the third planet," shouted the navigation officer.

"Logistics, give me your status," stated Captain Shisal.

"All satellites have been disabled. The aviation intercept fleet have been deployed to intercept all aircraft. Ready to engage EMP," replied the logistics officer.

"Engage," ordered Captain Shisal.

"Their aircraft have been shut down and transferred to our ship. They are being defueled and processed. All passengers are being placed in holding cells. The logistics team is busy transferring nuclear material to our special holding cells and we have engaged the safety measures to prevent leakage and explosion based on previously gathered intelligence. We are ninety percent complete with the transport of their biochemical material into their sun. We are now 100% complete with the transportation of the nuclear material, the chemical-biological weapons and all airborne aircraft have been processed. All waste material has been transported to their sun."

"Moving to military targets captain. All aircraft carriers have been transported, stripped of personnel and placed in holds for processing. We are 60% complete with processing of submarines and all other military ships. 80% now captain. Processing of military ships has been completed. We have moved to land-based military personnel and equipment. Personal weapons and ammunitions are all being sent to their sun as they are not worth processing. Tanks and small armored vehicles have been processed for their metal. Ten percent have been kept intact for sale to collectors. The rest have been stripped of fuel and non-metallic waste. The waste is being sent to their sun while the rest has been compressed and stored."

"Good work so far logistics. Now give me an update on the collection of the civilian population," commanded the captain.

"Captain," stated the logistics officer assigned to civilian personnel collection, "we are making a pass across the planet now. There are four columns of our flying vessels making a sweep from east to west across their planet along their longitudinal axis. We have many of our crewmembers using dimensional beacons to transport personnel from stadiums, malls, schools, high rises, highways, city centers and resorts."

The crewmembers transporting civilians to the _Andrea_ sat in front of large screens going looking for people to beam to holding cells. They slipped seamlessly through walls, resisting the temptation to be voyeurs. This is a new planet with a completely different species of people and cultures. Their inclination would be to see how this new species lived and built their civilization. But while they are on duty their job was to transport as many people as possible as quickly as possible.

Most families were trying to understand what happened to their power. Some were eating dinner, taking showers, having sex, sitting on the toilet, playing sports or just trying to get high. But it didn't matter. They were all swooped up in mass just as they were. They were all placed into similar holding cells, naked or not, finished peeing or not. This was very embarrassing for some, but it was of no interest to the logistics officers. When one cell filled up the system automatically switched the collection to another holding cell.

The operators skipped hospitals and nursing homes. Likewise, the old, sick, crippled and extremely overweight were not taken. Those who were in basements, caves, underwater or just plain lucky were pretty much safe. The goal was not to get everyone, just a majority of the people on the planet. When the Euclidian ships and logistics operators had finished their sweep of the planet, more than ninety percent of the Earth's population had been taken.

John was a maintenance person at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas. He was sitting in the basement watching the Texas, OU game when the power went off. He went up to the stadium stands to see what happened. As he stepped into the stadium his jaw dropped as he looked around the stadium to see that there were no people in the stands, on the field or in the booth. How could so many people have disappeared so quickly? He went outside and noticed that all the cars were still in the parking lot. He eventually decided to go home, and began walking after he couldn't get his car to start. On the way home he noticed that the streets were full of abandoned cars, but there was no one in them or on the street. It was as if someone had scooped them all up.

"Logistics," requested Captain Shisal, "what luck are we having with the businesses that sell or store the minerals we are looking for?"

"We are having tremendous luck sir. There are literally thousands of places that have gold, silver, platinum and other precious metals. They also have precious stones. Banks have a treasure trove of minerals as well. Governments have special warehouses full of gold and silver. Mints have coins made of various metals."

"That really makes our job easy. Keep the jewelry intact. It might be more valuable as jewelry. We will need to let marketers back on Euclidia make that call."

"Captain, many of the individual residents have jewelry, coins and other types of metal that could valuable to us. The only problem is that it is more tedious to find. We could spend ten minutes looking through a house and find nothing, or we might find a large collection of items. It's really hard to tell."

"As long as we are here doing the mining, have our people focusing on the larger homes. I don't want anyone sitting around doing nothing because the hit rate is so low on houses."

"Aye, aye captain."

"Speaking of the mining, let's concentrate our efforts on areas where they already have mining operations setup. No use in us mining areas that might have a low percentage of useful minerals. Once we've retrieved the atmosphere, water, animals and processed minerals let's plan our exit strategy. We are going to be putting a base here so I don't want the planet to be left uninhabitable."

"Understood captain."

"Once we get near the end of mining operations I plan to have a ball on the planet that I want as many people as possible to participate in. We will have to have some people visit in waves to make sure we have coverage for important posts. It's okay to stop mining operations during the ball. I don't want people to think I'm a complete hard ass."

"No one would think that of you sir."

"Plenty of the crewmembers are probably thinking that, they just better not say it out loud," Captain Shisal laughed stridently.

"Of course not captain."

"Getting back to the mission, have all of our mining vehicles been deployed?"

"Aye captain. Once the transportation of the civilian population has been completed, what should we do if we run across additional people that were not captured during the initial sweep captain?"

"Unless they are getting in the way of operations just ignore them. We need to keep enough people on this planet to perform manual labor and answer questions as needed."

"Aye, aye captain."

"While you're at it, find us a warm place to setup camp. Someplace on the water near one of their resorts. Make an extra effort to ensure that there are no inhabitants in that area and setup a security patrol to protect the place. Once the patrol is in place have the area setup for shore leave."

"Right away captain. I'm sure the crew will look forward to it."

"And so they should."
Chapter 15

Saving Morgan

The next morning Li Xiao checked in on Uan and saw him sitting in the passenger side of a black SUV next to Calvin. _They seem to be watching a hospital room waiting for someone to show up._ Thought Li Xiao. _It has to be the kid and small alien that Uan was tracking. Somehow these two little guys are a danger to the aliens' attack of the Earth. How could one human and a small alien be of so much interest to a supposedly large attack force?_ She decided to listen in on Uan and Calvin's conversation.

"The invasion must have started. I can't believe it is happening already. We have to get that alien right away," stated Uan.

"What invasion? Who is starting what invasion?" Asked Calvin.

Uan ignored him and checked his UCD to see what alerts he missed. He noticed that Morgan had entered the room and Denise later left with Pico, leaving Morgan inside, next to his mother's bed.

"They are back," snarled Uan. "This time they will not get away."

***

_What the hell is going on_? Thought Li Xiao. _Are the aliens invading now_? _What was that?_ Suddenly the television shutdown turning off CNN. Li Xiao looked around the living room and noticed that the clock, DVR and stereo system had lost power. Li Xiao thought maybe it was just that the building lost power. She looked out the window to see if anything was impacted. She noticed that not only was the power shutdown on the street, but the cars weren't moving either. She also saw a helicopter fall from the sky and crash into a tree.

Li Xiao looked back at her transport device and saw that it was still working and Uan had disappeared from the SUV. She panicked and switched her device to the hospital room with Morgan and Pico. There was a kid in the room now talking to the patient who was there. It appeared to be the boy's mother.

_Is the alien inside the hospital_? She switched her transport device to Uan and could see that he was going into the hospital after Morgan and decided to act. She put on her mask and robe and beamed to the hospital room next to Morgan.

***

Uan reached for his pulse rifle and pointed it at Morgan to snuff out his life. At that moment a masked Earth woman in an outfit appeared out of nowhere and hugged Morgan and his mother as if to protect them. _No matter_ , thought Uan, _I'll just kill all three of them_. Before he could pull the trigger they all disappeared.

_What the hell just happened?_ Uan thought. Uan looked around the hospital room, but it was empty. He had to find Morgan and that alien. He knew Pico was still in the hospital somewhere because he saw him leave with the doctor. He followed her scent down the hallway and lost it at the elevator. He hit the stairway and ran onto each floor until he picked up the scent again.

He followed the scent into the rehabilitation center and there was Pico sitting on the bed next to Jerome with Dr. Turner standing next to them. Then she appeared again. That strange Earthling. She grabbed Pico and Pico knew instantly what was happening. _Take those two as well!_ A voice screamed in Li Xiao's head. She wasn't sure where the request came from, but obeyed the strange command, putting her arms around Dr. Turner. Unfortunately they vanished before she could reach Jerome. Uan sent a blast their way just after they disappeared killing Jerome.

Uan let out a scream and shook his fist in the air. _That damn alien has way too much luck_. He turned from the room and went to rejoin Calvin at the SUV.

"Calvin, let's get back to our place. I need to get everyone in the basement before the ships appear and start gathering people up."

"What do you mean?" Asked Calvin.

"The invasion of your planet has started, which means that our ships will be collecting the people off of this planet for storage and later sale. Going below ground can save you because we don't bother with looking for people below ground."

"Oh that's generous of you. I guess the one thousand people left can get together and repopulate the planet in maybe a million years!" Calvin said sarcastically.

"Just drive!"

***

Morgan stared in amazement as Li Xiao returned with Pico and Denise in her arms. Denise screamed when she appeared in Li Xiao's living room. "Where the hell am I and how did I get here?!"

"I'm Li Xiao. I used my transportation device to get you out of the hospital and bring you to my apartment. There was an alien there about to kill you so I didn't have time to explain anything," explained Li Xiao.

"You need to go back and get my brother," Denise said hysterically.

"I can't go back there with that assassin in the room. Let me take a look real quick. Oh my goodness," said Li Xiao covering her mouth and shaking her head. "It looks like the assassin killed him."

Denise's eyes welled with tears. "No, no, no," said Denise shaking her head and falling to her knees. "I was supposed to take care of him. He was going to get better. Let me see him," said Denise reaching her hand out to Li Xiao.

Li Xiao showed Denise the image of Jerome on her transport device. Denise collapsed on the floor in tears. Norma hugged her and took her to the couch.

"Are you an alien?" Asked Morgan.

"No," replied Li Xiao. "I'm Chinese. I'm just someone who wants to help. I followed that alien to the hospital and saw he was about to kill you so I brought you here. My name is Li Xiao. I've been going by the name Guan-Yin to protect my real identity."

"Wo hen gao xing kan jian ni," replied Morgan bowing.

"That's pretty good. Did you learn Mandarin in school?"

"Yes, I did."

"When did you have time to learn Mandarin?" Asked Morgan's mother surprised.

"Pico modified my brain so I could concentrate better and I used the new ability to learn Mandarin in one night."

"That's pretty impressive Morgan," said Li Xiao.

"I think I heard of you," continued Morgan. "Aren't you the one that has been freeing the Chinese dissidents?"

"Yes, that's me."

"Li Xiao, could you get me some clothes to wear so I don't have to walk around in this hospital gown?" Asked Norma.

"Certainly. I'm sure I have something in my closet that might fit you," responded Li Xiao going into her bedroom. As she entered her transport device chirped to indicate that she was getting a message.

"Xiao, this is Cobalt. You should be able to hear me though you won't be able to speak to me. The invasion of your planet has started. You must get below ground level as soon as possible. You should be safe after twenty-four hours. I will come for you after they have finished sweeping your planet. Go quickly Xiao. I hope to see you soon."

Li Xiao softly touched the screen of her transport device with her fingertips as Cobalt's image faded from view.

Li Xiao returned to her living room with clothes for Norma. "Everyone listen up. Let's grab some food and water from the kitchen. We need to move to the parking garage as soon as possible. The power is out so we will need to take the stairs. Morgan, will your mother be able to make it okay?"

"Yes, I'll help her," replied Morgan.

"I can help too," stated Denise.

"Pico, what's going on?" Asked Morgan.

"The Euclidian invasion has started. Soon they will be going through and beaming people off of your planet. Being below ground is the safest place to be until they have finished."

"Mom, do you think you can make it down the stairs okay?"

"Sure, thanks to Pico I feel like a teenager again. The way I feel right now I bet I could take you in a game of tennis."

"Sure mom. For now let's just see if you can beat me to the garage."

Li Xiao led the four of them to the bottom level of the building's underground garage. She attempted to convince her neighbors to join her on the way down, but they just thought she was crazy.

"Everyone, please stay here for at least twenty-four hours," asked Li Xiao. "I know it may be uncomfortable, but it will be the only way to stay safe from the alien ships. You should have enough food and water to sustain yourselves. These buckets will have to suffice as facilities. There are a couple of flashlights in the bag in case the emergency lights give out. I'm going to try to save my family if I can. If I'm not back in an hour I may not be back at all. Morgan has the keys to my place, so feel free to make yourselves at home there."

Li Xiao selected the coordinates to her parent's house and pushed the transport button on her device. The four watched Li Xiao as she disappeared and wondered what their lives would be like after the alien's attacked Earth.

***

"There have been many movies about alien invasions," started Denise, "but we always found a way to defeat them. In retrospect it is a bit unrealistic to believe that a civilization could be advanced enough to travel millions of light years to Earth and then be beaten by a civilization that can't even travel to Mars."

"Do you think they will destroy our planet?" Asked Morgan.

"I don't know," replied Denise.

"When they came to my planet, their intent was not to destroy it" said Pico. "They only decided to do so after they were attacked by my people. I believe that Earth will be left intact, but life won't be the same for the people who are left here."

"I am hoping that the people who are left can come together to build a better world," Morgan's mother stated. "I would hate to see us turn on each other like we have seen in so many post-apocalyptic movies I've seen."

"Pico, can you see what's going on above ground?" Asked Morgan.

"No, I don't sense anything." Replied Pico. Since Pico had made a mental connection with all of them, they were all able to hear his thoughts.

"Why don't we all get to know each other to pass the time? We can give a brief history of ourselves and how we got here. I can start. My name is Morgan Stewart. That's my mother Norma Stewart. I never knew my father. I lived with her until she got sick and had to move in with a foster family. I went to private school until my move and then I started going to public school. I really disliked my new family and school and was considering running away until I met Pico."

"I was in an alley hitting a tennis ball when a strange looking person came in the alley with a gun and looked like she was going to kill a kid. I knocked the gun from the person's hand and the police came up and chased the person away. That's when I met Pico. He was starving and I found a way to feed him. He told me about his shaman ball and special powers. He used them to help me think better and healed my mother. An alien tried to kill us once and he used his powers to protect us. The alien came back today and this time Li Xiao showed up and brought us here. That's my whole story."

"I guess I should go next since I'm Morgan's mother. I'm Norma Stewart. I grew up in a decent family in D.C. When I was in high school I met this wonderful man. His name was Billy Davis. I was so in love and I thought we were going to get married and move to New York and sing together. Soon after I got pregnant he disappeared and I never saw him again. My parents threw me out when I decided to keep the baby. I worked whatever jobs I could to keep Morgan in good schools. One day I had a fall at work. I was initially okay, but then the falls continued. I later found out that I had a brain tumor and would probably not live much longer. I was in a coma until this morning. Come to find out that Pico somehow got rid of my tumor and I came out of my coma. I was just sitting in bed talking to Morgan when Li Xiao showed up and here I am."

"I can go next," started Pico using telepathy. "Can everyone hear me?" They all nodded. Though Pico did not have a mouth he could use telepathy to communicate with humans once he modified their brains to be able to focus without distraction.

"I grew up on the planet Cerebran. It was a large gas planet millions of light years from here. People there normally communicate using telepathy. I breathe and eat through my skin. We use crystals like this one," stated Pico pulling it from his abdomen. Denise and Norma gasped. Pico cocked his head to the side confused. "As I was saying, we use crystals like this to amplify our brain waves and thus our mental abilities."

Pico connected to the crystal and used his ability to lift a nearby car. "I can use the crystal to connect with people's brains from long distances, heal people and fly among other things."

"Can you show us how you fly?" Asked Norma.

"Sure," replied Pico levitating himself and making a quick tour of the parking garage. They all clapped when he was finished.

"On Earth I get nutrients from metal and citrus fruits."

"That's why you were carrying those nails and that lemon," stated Denise.

"Yes, you are right. You were the only person to ever figure out that I was an alien and not an action figure."

"I am a doctor you know, and trained to be observant of people."

"I'm glad you noticed, because otherwise I would not have been able to help Morgan's mother properly."

"I never did get to thank you Pico," said Morgan's mother walking over and giving him a hug. "Thanks for giving me more time with my son even if it may be short lived."

"You're welcome," replied Pico telepathically.

"You know, it really is odd communicating with you like this. Is it a side effect of the treatments you gave me?" She said looking down at Pico.

"Yes, I modified your cells so you could focus better. That helped me communicate with you while you were in the coma. I was learning to become a shaman when the Euclidians attacked our planet. They were stealing our atmosphere and removing our minerals from the ground with their vehicles. The planet's shaman decided to attack their ship and used their combined power to try and send it into the sun. The Euclidians somehow thwarted the attack and then sent our planet into the sun with the shaman blocked in a cave, as revenge for the attack."

"I hid in one of the Euclidian mining vehicles to keep from being killed by their aircraft that were flying around and firing on people. When the vehicle went back to their ship I was discovered and imprisoned in one of their cells. When I used my hands to get nutrients from the metal walls of the cell I created holes in the wall large enough to escape. I found my way to their transporter room and hitched a ride with a human that was on her way to Earth. Soon after we arrived a Euclidian security guard found her while she was walking outside and dragged her into an alley. When I tried to get away the guard came after me and that is when Morgan saved me. I stayed with him because I didn't know what else to do. I was using my shaman stone to help heal his mother when Denise discovered that I was an alien. I was with Denise helping her brother when the alien assassin showed up to kill me. Li Xiao suddenly appeared and saved me and Denise before he could shoot us. It's unfortunate what happened to her brother. Now here I am hoping I can help Morgan and others survive the attack from the Euclidians."

"I guess it's my turn. I'm Doctor Denise Turner. I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan with my older brother Jerome. We had a pretty good childhood and were lucky that our parents could pay for our college. After high school Jerome went to medical school and I followed after him a couple of years later."

"I went to the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado, or CU as we called it, for my undergraduate degree. I simply loved Boulder. It was sunny about three hundred days out of the year. Event with the sun it certainly got cold in the winter, but it was great to see the sun so often. When I lived in Boulder I was enamored by how the people there embraced diversity. They didn't seem to mind where you came from or what your race was, they were just happy to engage you in stimulating conversation. They were less tolerant of smokers or people who left their Christmas lights up after the beginning of the year though. I miss the sense of community and focus on fitness in Boulder. They also had a lot of great places to eat and drink. I lived in a small apartment on the hill near the Fox Theatre. In the summer I would ride my bike to school and the nearby neighborhood. On the weekends I would ride my bike on the Boulder Creek trail all the way across town without having to worry about traffic lights or cars. In winter I would catch the city bus and go skiing at the Eldora Ski Resort just 30 minutes from town. My favorite place to get a drink was the Rio Grande or Rios as we all called it. They had the most amazing margaritas that I've ever drunk."

"What made you leave?" Asked Morgan.

"I wanted to be closer to home, which is Michigan. I received my doctorate from the University of Michigan and took time to go home once a month to visit my sick aunt. However, when I got married my husband and I moved to D.C. where I got a job at a local hospital. We spent our honeymoon in Boulder staying at the St. Julien Hotel and Spa. I got a massage there every morning and my new husband and I spent the evenings holding hands and walking along Pearl Street Mall picking a new place to eat dinner each night. I loved that man dearly. He was later killed in a traffic accident and I never remarried. That last thing I remember saying to him was, 'Goodbye Max.'"

"I decided to stay in D.C and one day Norma became one of my patients," said Denise grabbing her hand. "I got to know Morgan from his frequent visits. One day he came in with what looked to be a doll. Sorry, action figure," stated Denise after seeing Morgan cringe. "After examining Pico I determined that he was alive. Pico revealed himself to me and showed me wondrous things that he could do with his mind while healing Norma. Selfishly I asked him to help my brother who was a heroin addict. We were in his hospital room when Li Xiao showed up and teleported us here. I have no idea what is in store for me next. I can only suppose that the world will always need a good doctor."

"How do we know that the new world that is left after the alien invasion is a world worth living?" Asked Morgan's mother.

"It's still a bit too early to know," responded Denise. "I'm hoping that Pico and Li Xiao can use their power's to help ensure that we can rebuild a new world better than the previous one."

***

"It's happening," stated Pico.

"What's happening?" Asked Morgan.

"They're taking people," said Pico pulling out his shaman stone.

"From the apartment?" Asked Denise.

"From the city. They're all gone. I can sense the extinguishing of thought all across the city in waves. There are whispers of people below ground that weren't taken, but they are few and far between. They aren't using ships. It's as if people are just vanishing into thin air."

"Is there anything we can do to save people? Can you teleport them down here?" Asked Norma.

"It's already too late. I'm reaching out for hundreds of miles and there's basically no one out there to save."

***

In another part of DC, Uan had returned to his apartment with Calvin. Betty and Dominique were sitting in the living room wondering what happened to the electricity.

"The invasion of your planet has started," stated Uan. "One of the first things we do is disrupt all electronics on a planet. That is why you have no electricity."

"When will it come back on?" Asked Dominique.

"Probably never."

"How are we supposed to survive without electricity?"

"You do not need electricity to survive. There is still plenty of food and water."

"The food is not going to last long once everyone starts stripping the stores bare."

"I'm sure we will be fine," stated Uan not revealing what else happens during the invasion.

"What happens once it gets dark?" Asked Betty.

"Don't worry. I have flashlights and candles for when it gets dark," stated Calvin.

"The one thing you must do is stay inside this apartment for the next day. I do not want any of you to be affected by the invasion," warned Uan.

"What does that mean?" Asked Betty.

"Just do what I say," replied Uan walking off to the kitchen.

Chapter 16

Saying Goodbye to Earth

Once the Euclidian finished going across the Earth and collecting people, major cities across the globe became ghost towns. Cities that were once bustling with activity lay silent. Not just from the lack of people, but lack of electricity and vehicles.

Tokyo, Moscow, London, Beijing, Rome, Istanbul, Cairo, New York and Mexico City were all empty except for a few hundred people here and there that managed to escape the eyes of the Euclidian ships and teleport operators by being in basements, subways or just plain lucky.

A day after the Euclidian ships had finished their removal of the Earth's citizenry, people were still afraid to leave their homes or offices for fear that whatever took all the people would return and get them. Everyone feared it was aliens or evil spirits. Though it was dark at night, especially in windowless apartments, no one dare light a candle or use a flashlight, which escaped the effects of the EMP due to their simplicity. Julie sat in her apartment in downtown Austin shaking with fear at every sound. She was one of the lucky ones along with her friend Patty who was visiting from San Diego.

"Patty, you can't imagine what I have been going through the past two days. It was so hot I couldn't stand it, but I didn't dare open a window. I was just sitting there enjoying the late evening sun on the fire escape when everyone started disappearing. A shadow passed over the city and everything went quiet. First the people were gone and then the cars disappeared. What could make that happen? When the electricity got disrupted I thought it was just due to the summer heat. After the people disappeared I thought a government experiment had gone awry. I got on my bike and rode to the water. I saw no one the entire way and when I got to the water I saw the most enormous ship floating over the water and I knew it had to be alien. A couple of aliens were standing on the shore observing it. I just freaked out and rode my bike straight home. I was so afraid they had gotten you as well."

"I was at the museum and one of the workers there told me there were some ancient Indian artifacts in the basement and encouraged me to just go and look at them by myself. You know how I love the stuff and I just sort of got lost in all the stuff I found. When the lights went off I was completely disoriented, but not afraid. It took me a while to find the stairs and make it to the ground floor. When I got there no one could be found. That sort of startled me since I expected to see employees there to help visitors get to safety. I found my way outside and that's when I knew something was gravely wrong. No people, no cars, I felt like I was on some movie lot. Since I am not from here and I was so far away it took me a while to make it back to your apartment."

"I'm just glad you made it back. I was so afraid I was the only one left."

"Unfortunately, I can't stay. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm going to try to get back to my family in San Diego. Maybe this incident is isolated or my family got lucky and was spared. Either way I need to get back to them. You should come with me."

"My family is here and I need to try and find them, though I am still very much afraid."

Patty left this afternoon and now I sit alone in the dark sweating, waiting for them to come for me. Somehow during the day I feel safe, but at night my courage slips away and I'm just afraid. I'm certain that the aliens have been in my building. I could hear their quiet footsteps. I just sit here afraid to move. I've barely eaten, I don't sleep and I haven't flushed my toilet since Patty left. I wish I could go back to just worrying about keeping my low-wage job or not getting herpes from some cute guy at the bar.

***

The next morning in Uan's apartment Calvin makes an interesting discovery.

"Uan, where is everybody?" Asked Calvin looking out the window. "The streets are completely empty. I mean there is no one anywhere. There aren't even any cars out there."

"They have all been taken to our ships for processing."

"What do you mean processing? Like for food?"

"No, we do not eat sentient beings. They are placed in large rooms for transport. We sometimes need to adjust the air, temperature and food to keep the captives alive. We also make an inventory of each person. Size, height, strength, looks and so on."

"What happens next?"

"They are sold on the open market to whoever will buy them. Some rich person might buy two as museum pieces or a company may purchase a million or more to help clear or cultivate a new planet. Many will be used for mining. Just like in the early days on your planet. The stronger civilizations conquered the weaker ones. And to the victors go the spoils."

"So what happens to us?"

"I go back to my ship and you stay here to live out your lives."

"What kind of life is it going to be when we have no utilities, no means for creating goods and all of our vehicles are gone? How many people are even left here to rebuild our planet?"

"Why are you complaining? There is plenty of food in your stores and in the meantime, learn to grow more. There are probably still about a hundred million people left scattered across your planet, which solves your overcrowding problem."

"I would rather be in overcrowded conditions than on an empty planet with inoperable technology."

"I can help you all find a safe place to stay on the planet with plenty of food and water. I can even get you some special weapons to help you protect yourselves."

"I can't believe you risked your life to save me and now you're going to abandon me. Why can't I go with you," said Betty with pleading in her voice.

"There is no room for you on my ship and the life is not as pleasant as you might think."

"You mean to tell me that you placed around six billion people on your ship, but you don't have room for me?"

"You do not want to be in those crowded cells. They are smelly and uncomfortable. In the end you could end up as a slave on a hostile planet."

"For an advanced creature you don't know much about love," piped up Dominique.

"What love?" Replied Uan.

"Betty you dummy," stated Calvin.

Uan pursed his lips and took a long look at Betty. Betty had tears in her eyes as she looked longingly at Uan. Her lips quivered and she shook her head as she began to plead with Uan.  
"Why can't I come with you? Is there someone else in your life or is it just shameful to be around a species that is from a conquered planet?" Betty demanded.

"I can be with anyone I choose, but I have never had a mate before," replied Uan.

"You're a virgin?" Asked Calvin startled.

"No you fool. I have taken several women and probably have offspring. Our species does not form relationships the way you do."

"You can say that again. He almost killed me when I hugged him and thanked him for saving my life."

"I was not familiar with your customs at the time," replied Uan angrily.

"If you are so emotionless tell me why you risked your life saving me?" Asked Betty.

"I have taken many women, but I have never been taken by a woman before. It touched me. I did not want anyone to hurt you."

"But you are going to hurt me now by leaving me in this desolate place without you."

"I cannot take you with me."

"Then stay. Stay with me."

"I cannot. This is not my life."

"Then kill me. You're good at that. You might as well have left me with Boudreau. At least he treated me better than you."

"I could always send you back, but he is probably no longer there."

"You bastard!" Stated Betty lunging at Uan. She knocked him on the floor and started swinging violently at his head.

"Kill me you bastard. Go ahead and kill me!" Betty shouted frantically.

Uan knocked her to the side like a rag doll and stood up. Betty got to her feet and came at him again. Uan grabbed her by the throat and lifted her up against the wall. He pulled out his spear and held it in the air bracing to slit her throat.

"You cut her and I'll put a hole in your head big enough to fly your spaceship through," threatened Dominique with her gun pointed at Uan's head. "I'll bet these bullets still work don't they? And if you try that camouflage crap I'll fill this room with lead until I hit you. This gun carries an extended magazine and I'm one angry bitch about now so don't test me."

"Don't do it man. Just let her go and leave," Calvin pleaded.

Uan looked up at Betty who was whimpering uncontrollably under his grip. He slowly slid her back to the floor.

"Okay, I will take you with me. Just stop crying. It makes you look weak and you are anything, but weak dominatrix."

"Just weak for you Uan," said Betty hugging Uan. "Give me one moment for happy tears and I promise you'll never see another one."

"You cry when you are happy and you cry when you are sad. I do not understand how humans have survived so long."

"They're coming too," said Betty pointing at Calvin and Dominique. "They can be bodyguards."

"You will not need protection on the ship. It is quite safe."

"No, they will be your bodyguards to protect you from me."

"Okay," Uan laughed and the room erupted in cheers.

"Can we take anything with us?" Asked Dominique.

"You can each take one bag," replied Uan. "Calvin, grab a bag and take a last look around, because we will not be coming back here. When you are ready I will have the ship pick us up."

A half an hour later Calvin walked in with a black Nike duffle bag filled to the point that it couldn't be closed.

"Okay, I'm ready for my next great adventure," stated Calvin.

Uan stated something into his UCD and moments later they were aboard the Euclidian reconnaissance ship. Uan had a few words with the crew of the ship and then turned to Betty.

"I let them know the coordinates of your apartment. Are you ready to pick up your stuff?"

"Yes."

"You will have thirty minutes after which you will just be beamed back to this ship ready or not."

"I understand."

Uan nodded at the crew and Betty disappeared.

"Your turn Dominique," said Uan turning to Dominique. "Show me where you live on my device. This is the club where I first met you."

"Wow, how are you doing that. That looks like a live shot."

"We have monitoring devices placed all over your planet. I am able to tie into any of them with my device."

"Can I move the screen around by touching it?"

"Yes, just slide the image around by moving your fingers across the surface."

"This is pretty cool. There's my building there. My goodness, the camera is going right inside. I have got to get one of these devices."

"You will once you arrive on our ship for indoctrination."

"This is my apartment right here."

"I will have the crew send you down and you will have thirty minutes to gather your things before they transport you back here."

"Trust me. I won't need fifteen. I assume I can get more clothes where we are going."

"Yes, of course. Just shout when you are ready and they will beam you back."

Uan nodded to the crew and Dominique was gone. Uan decided to give Captain Shisal a call to update him on the events that had transpired.

"Captain Shisal, this is Uan calling in. Are you free to talk?"

"Go ahead Uan," replied Captain Shisal.

"I found the alien, but I was unable to kill him."

"No to worry. You kept him out of our hair, which is all I cared about. We found a beautiful place to setup camp in a location called Key West, Florida. We are on the West side of the island at the Westin Resort. There's going to be a formal ball there tomorrow and I want you to be there. I'm sure the time spent here in these primitive conditions must have been miserable."

"Yes, but I had my moments of excitement."

"Come on down. We'll have a drink and chat. They've got some stuff here they call ganga that you've got to try."

"That'll be a bit difficult as I have some Earthlings that are going to be sharing my cabin. They saved my life during the scuffle and I promised to find them a new place to make home since there's won't be habitable for a while."

"Why don't we just make them members of the crew so they can get formally loaded into the system and get their own cabins on the junior crew deck. Have logistics setup an indoctrination session for them."

"I'm a bit worried about the discipline required for the process. Earthlings aren't used too intergalactic travel or being around aliens."

"If they can't handle the process then they don't deserve to be on the ship. They are either captives or they are crew. The _Andrea_ is not a cruise ship."

"Understood captain."

"If they survive indoctrination get them some ball clothing and bring them to the ball. I'd love to meet them."

"They may feel a bit uncomfortable there."

"Trust me; they won't be the only Earthlings at the ball. It's the same everywhere we go. Capture most of the inhabitants during the first wave of the invasion and befriend the ones that are left. That gives us a chance to understand new species. They can even be great source of conversation for us."

"I would like to shield them from the kind of scrutiny and abuse that can happen during those events. After all, they did save my life."

"All the more reason to bring them. So it's settled. The ball starts at 2:70 ship's time. Just as the sun sets here. Sunset is a big event for the inhabitants. I expect to see you all are here."

"Not to worry. We'll all be there."

Ten minutes after going to her apartment Dominique was ready to depart. She left a note for anyone left who might come looking for her. _Dear family,_

I've hitched a ride on a spaceship to the other side of the universe. I fear I will never return.

Much love,

Dominique

Dominique paused for a moment before standing up and preparing to depart. _Now I guess I'm supposed to shout out as if they'll hear me on the ship,_ she thought to herself. "I'M READY TO RETURN." _As if that is supposed to work._ "Whoa!"

"Welcome back Dominique," greeted Calvin. "You didn't bring much," he stated noticing her simple Coach bag.

"I'm hoping to start over. Louisiana was sort of a dead end for me. I'm happy to be gone though I'm a bit apprehensive about my future. I didn't think I'd be leaving home on an alien spacecraft."

"Me either. All in all I'd rather be visiting a new place with Uan than taking my chances on a post-apocalyptic Earth. I've seen too many of those movies and none of them end well. Even when the good guys win they are stuck in a place that is not worth living."

"Oddly enough I've never seen one where the aliens have a successful invasion and some Earthlings get to start a life on another planet."

"I admit I'm a bit nervous. However, the way Uan explained it to me; it will be like being on the Champs Elysees in Paris. There will be so many people from so many places you sort of get lost in the mélange of it all."

"That's good. I hope he has a large cabin. I hate sharing, but it would be better than being stuck in a large room with the other captives."

"I heard that. I wonder what the bathrooms are like. They have to have at least fifteen kinds humanoid poop to deal with."

"Yep, and what are showers like and can I get I get my hair done? I wonder if they've ever seen a fro before? Do you think he is just faking us out and will stick us in with the other captured humans once we are on the ship?"

"No, that's not going to happen. Uan doesn't lie. He has no reason to. He's not afraid of anyone or anything."

"He seems to be soft on Betty though, if you can call almost cutting her throat and then asking her to join him on the ship soft," Dominique said with a smile.

"One day I'll have to tell you about the whole dominatrix bit she pulled on him. That made him respect her. I think that's as close to love as he gets."

Suddenly Betty appeared aboard the ship with a trunk.

"Speak of the devil. Hey girl," greeted Dominique.

"Hey Dominique," replied Betty.

"I see you got an entire Louis Vuitton trunk."

"I wish I could have brought more. We don't know if they have skillets, plates or even silverware where we are going. So I got as much kitchen stuff as I could carry. Plus heirlooms, clothes, weapons and my dominatrix gear. You know Uan would be pissed if I forgot that."

"You've got to turn me on to that dominatrix stuff when you get a chance."

"I'd love to."

"I spoke with the captain," Uan broke in, "and he is going to let you be members of the crew. You will get your own cabins and universal connection devices (UCD). However, you will eventually be assigned jobs on the ship and expected to perform."

"I think we can handle that once we learn the language," stated Calvin.

"They will teach you Euclidian once you are on the ship. It is a requirement as a crewmember. I will teach you something now. _stowtan char_ means _greetings captain_. You must use that when you meet the captain tomorrow tonight at the ball."

"We're going to a ball? I don't have anything to wear," said Dominique frantically.

"That will be taken care of on the ship. It is more important that you learn the greeting. So say it, _stowtan char_ , with your fists together and eyes looking down," stated Uan emphatically.

"Stowtan char," they all repeated.

"The captain is not one to be disrespected. That can easily get you killed," said Uan.

"Maybe we should skip the ball," stated Calvin nervously.

"That would not be wise. He is expecting you. He did agree to let you on his ship as crewmembers."

"Boy do I regret that decision," exclaimed Dominique.

"On the contrary, this is one of the most life changing decisions that you have ever made. You will not regret this decision," replied Calvin.

"I'm game honey," stated Betty holding Uan's arm.

"Please do not call me honey in public," stated Uan pushing Betty away from him. "I prefer to keep our amorous moments within the confines of private spaces if you do not mind."

The ship's crew was snickering in the background, which unnerved Uan.

"I think it is time we headed to the _Andrea_ and started your indoctrination", stated Uan. "Is everyone ready to go?"

They all nodded, Uan turned to the crew and within an instant they were in the indoctrination area of the _Andrea_.
Chapter 17

Failed Attack

"I seen 'em I tell you. Just hanging out at the beach just like they's on vacation. If we had a bunch a guns we could take 'em out. None of them's carrying weapons 'cept a couple a guards. Them flying things are off to the edge a the island covering the beach an the bridge."

"Fine Jeb, but won't their flying ships shoot us down before we can get off the bridge?" Asked Ezekiel.

"That's it though. We don't walk across the bridge, we row under it."

"That sounds pretty clever, but won't they still see us?"

"They didn't see me," chuckled Jeb. "It was at night and I went right up on the beach. I was staring at them from one of their beach bungalows. Big fellas they were, along with the women. There were even different types of aliens there."

"You mean like in that bar on _Star Wars_?"

"Yep, just like that. They obviously don't have a problem with prejudice. That wouldn't play well in my house."

"Mine neither."

"You know what the strangest thing was Ezekiel?"

"What's that Jeb?"

"They all had to go to the bathroom just like we do. They were going in and out of the restroom like nobody's business. They laugh and kid around too. You'd almost think they were human. Makes you want to go up and chat with them."

"All except for they took all the people off the planet and now they are stealing all our resources. Sort a like we did when we first discovered America."

"So do you think they took all the people for slaves or food?"

"Hard to say. They don't seem like the type to eat humans. I mean they seem civilized and all. After they finished scooping people up they just ignored the rest of us. I've seen them fly overhead and not pay me no mind. It's like they got their quota and we're just not worth the extra effort."

"Maybe they worried about their game warden fining them for having too big a catch," Ezekiel said laughing.

"You just a dang fool ain't ya."

"Come on, you know I'm just funin. Let's get back to the militia and hatch ourselves a plan."

***

Later that night two boat loads of gun toting militiamen headed towards the island of Key West with simple handheld motors that they were able to build from spare parts. They stayed underneath the roadway to stay hidden from the Euclidian air craft. They could see the glowing edges of the Euclidian attack vehicles hovering overhead. The vehicles either didn't see them or didn't care about them.

"Jeb, why the heck did you bring those damn water balloons? You think they are going to want to play games with us?" Asked Ezekiel.

"They balloons alright, but they ain't filled with water. It's my backup plan in case our guns don't work," replied Jeb.

"Whatever you say Jeb. Lookie, we actually done made it to shore without being spotted."

"Listen up everybody," Jeb jumped in, "them aliens are about a mile up the beach at that Hyatt resort. Once we get there, the first team is going to go around to the other side of the main building. We'll wait on this side of the resort until team one is in position. Team one, when you are ready start unloading on those alien bastards and we'll join in from this side. Any questions? Then let's head out," commanded Jeb.

Jeb was the commander of what was left of the twenty-first militia regiment. His military experience consisted of two years in the army before getting a general discharge under honorable conditions because he was considered mentally unfit for duty. He still wanted to be patriotic so he joined a local militia group. He and Ezekiel missed being grabbed by the aliens because they were passed out drunk in Jeb's uncle's basement. Pissed because so many of their relatives were taken by the aliens they decided to fight back in any way that they could.

After fifteen minutes the two teams arrived at the resort where the aliens were partying. The team that Jeb led hid behind a beach house while team one continued around the other side of the main building.

"We'll just wait here until we hear the shots from the other side. There only appear to be three guards. Everybody make sure your safety is off, you have a round in the chamber and keep your fingers off the trigger until you are ready to shoot those aliens," advised Jeb.

"And when we start off, spread out. It will be harder for them to pick us off and we don't want to shoot each other in the back neither," stated Ezekiel.

Ezekiel met Jeb in the militia. They grew up in nearby small towns in the southern tip of Florida. Ezekiel liked to shoot guns so joined the militia where he could learn to shoot a lot of different guns. Jeb taught Ezekiel what he learned from the army and they soon became good friends. He found out about the alien abduction from a neighbor who saw his wife and son beamed away from the top of the stairs leading to the fruit cellar. He came up from the cellar to see what had happened and his backyard that was previously full of family and friends was empty. He met with Ezekiel and joined the militia to go after the aliens.

Jeb and Ezekiel always thought they might have to defend their country from invaders, but never thought that the invaders would come from beyond their solar system.

Bang! Bang! The sound of gunfire came from the opposite side of the resort.

"That's them. Let's move out!" Commanded Jeb.

Upon hearing the shots, one of the Euclidian guards went to the other side of the beach to engage the attackers. The two remaining guards held their ground and called for air cover. When Jeb's group attacked the remaining guard they were unable to injure him with their gunfire. She seemed to be protected by some sort of personal force field. The guard easily picked off a couple of members from Jeb's team and after the attack ships arrived most of the remaining members of the team were killed off. Jeb made it back behind the beach hut where he stashed his balloons.

_I'm not going to let those damned aliens kill us off without killing at least one of them. Let's see how they like these alcohol balloons_ , thought Jeb.

Jeb tossed two balloons at each of the guards who were now guarding his side of the beach. The balloons were filled with rubbing alcohol, which ignited on impact with the guards. The two guards panicked and ran into the water. Jeb jumped up and down shouting with joy.

"Take that you damned aliens. Think you're invincible do ya?"

Before he could enjoy his triumph Jeb was vaporized by one of the hovering attack ships. The only person left out of the two teams was a woman who took shelter next to a towel hut near the pool. Its awning shielded her from the attack ships.

***

After the party recommenced one of the party goers noticed her hiding in a corner. Several of them came over to get a closer look at what an Earthling looked like. As they drew near she became incredibly frightened. She fell to her knees, put her face to the ground and placed her hands out in front of her.

"Please don't hurt me," she begged.

The crowd started to laugh not knowing what she was saying. A Majorellen that spoke English came forward to speak to her.

"Hello female. I am Dexin. What is your name?"

The lady looked up at Dexin wide-eyed, surprised that the odd looking creature could speak English.

"My name is Pura," the lady said shyly.

"Standup Pura and talk to us. We won't bite. Anyway, we've already eaten."

A laugh came from the crowd as Dexin's words were translated. Pura could not resist a smile after hearing the laughter.

"Come and join us," offered Dexin, "You'll see we can be a lot of fun."

_She's clear,_ a guard nodded to Dexin.

"You are not going to kill or enslave me?" Pura responded.

"Of course not. As long as you are not going to try to kill or enslave one of us." Another burst of laughter came from the crowd, which elicited another smile from Pura.

"No, why would I do that?"

"Your friends sure wanted to."

"I really didn't know them that well. We only met this morning. Everyone I knew had disappeared. When I met them I thought it would be safer to be with them than to be on my own. They attacked you because you kidnapped our people and you are stealing our resources."

"We are taking some of your resources, but there will be plenty left for you. As for the kidnapping, we have all the people we need. The rest we will leave here unharmed as long as they don't attack us. Take my arm and let me get you a drink. I can also get you some food if you are hungry."

Dexin put out his arm and Pura took it. They walked towards a bar where a Euclidian was serving drinks. It looked to Pura as if they had taken over the pool bar and replaced all the standard alcoholic beverages with strange bottles containing even stranger liquids. Some glowed, some sparkled, some changed colors and some moved on their own as if they were alive.

_Let me have two Tammarian grogs,_ stated Dexin to the bartender. Dexin took the two drinks and handed one to Pura.

"Are you sure this won't make me ill?" Asked Pura.

"Yes, I'm sure. Some earthlings have already tried it," replied Dexin.

"Oh really?"

"To your health Pura," said Dexin raising his glass.

"Cheers," replied Pura. "Wow, this is yummy. "What is this?"

"It's Tammarian grog. Earthlings tend to like it."

"So you know other earthlings?"

"I've seen a few here and there."

"How is it you speak English and know about our culture?"

"I'm a Majorellen and our race has a natural ability for picking up languages. We work as translators and interrogators on the ship. When we planned the mission here I was required to learn your planet's languages."

"All of them?"

"No just the major ones. Do you mind coming over to our table? Several of the crewmembers are interested in meeting you. I'll translate for you."

"I guess. As long as it's safe."

Pura followed Dexin over to the table. Dexin made a gesture to those seated as if he were introducing her to them. They sort of nodded and smiled at her. Pura smiled and nodded to them.

"Pura the first thing they would like to do is just touch your skin and hair if that is okay. I promise they won't hurt you. They are surprised that humans don't bleed to death more often from wounds to your delicate skin. Of course you are free to reciprocate."

"Okay, I guess. As long as they are not going to hurt me."

"Don't worry, they have no intention of hurting you."

Dexin gestured towards Pura and they all walked over and started touching her. Pura was afraid at first, but relaxed and eventually worked up her nerve to touch one of them. She was surprised at the variations in skin texture. All mostly reptilian like. Stiff or scaly or bumpy or leathery.

A person in the group squeezed her breasts and said something to Dexin.

"She wants to know what purpose the lumps on your chest serve."

Pura pushed her hands away. "They are used to feed our newborn offspring," Pura responded.

"Where are your babies?"

"I don't have any. They are in case I do have them."

Dexin translated for the group.

_Seems like a horrible waste,_ one of them stated, and they all laughed.

"Are you all from the same planet?"

"No not at all. We represent three different planets, but we all live on Euclidia for now."

"You all seem to get along so well. People here don't get along and they are all from the same planet."

"It takes time to learn that everyone benefits when you all get along. Our civilizations are thousands of years older than yours and we still have the occasional war with other planets, but not amongst ourselves," stated Dexin.

"Where are your planets?"

"Many lights years from here beyond your galaxy."

"How were you able to get here so quickly?"

"We travel in inter-dimensional space. While there we can travel much faster than in normal space and we don't age."

"Wow, that must be nice. I guess your planets are extremely different from ours?"

"Yes indeed. Here have a look," said Dexin showing her his UCD. "This is what my planet looks like from space. When I zoom in you can see the city, vehicles, people much like on your planet."

"Yea, I see roads and traffic signs. How fascinating."

Dexin took a moment to translate their conversation to everyone.

"Robin wants to know why everyone wears so much clothing all the time."

"Mostly to be comfortable, but it's also a legal requirement. You can be thrown in jail for walking around naked."

Dexin translated to the group and they all started laughing. One person in the group made a statement to Dexin.

"So he says," Dexin started, "that participating in things that can cause joy like nudity and drugs are illegal, while things that can destroy civilization like guns, pollution and nuclear weapons are okay. At some level you will be better off now that your nuclear weapons and overcrowding problems are gone. I think everyone here will be too busy putting your planet back together to start a war in the near term. Though I'm sure you will focus on rebuilding your militaries before addressing any infrastructure issues. Those with guns will take food from those without guns not understanding that when you work together everyone can get fed."

"Isn't that what you're doing to us?!" Pura snapped.

"Yes, with one small difference. You are an inferior race of beings on a distant planet and your existence or nonexistence would have no bearing on our home planets. Trust me if your planet attacked ours we wouldn't be screwing each other over for the remaining scraps."

"Is there such a thing as abortion on your planet?"

"Not in the way that you perform them. If a person doesn't want to carry a fetus to term we are able to remove it without harming it and place it into an artificial womb until it is born."

"Then who are its parents?"

"No one, unless someone adopts the child. Orphans are placed in a school where they will grow up alongside others like them. They are assigned guidance counselors which take on the duties of standard parents."

"You mean they are placed in orphanages."

"Trust me; they are nothing like your orphanages."

"Pura, this is Goron. He is a Euclidian officer on our ship. He would like to escort you to our ball tomorrow and afterwards spend the evening with you having sex."

"Why would I want to do that? Is it even possible between our species?"

"I'm sure your two species will be able to manage sex somehow. Goron says if he enjoys his evening with you, you can be his companion for the rest of the mission. Afterwards, you can return here or go to any planet that you like. They all have to be better than returning here."

"How would I survive on another planet? What about the air and germs?"

"Most of the planets will have enough oxygen. If not you can get implants placed in your nostrils to compensate for any atmospheric deficiencies. As for germs, once onboard we will modify your genes so germs won't be an issue for you anymore."

"Can I bring my sister?"

"He hasn't agreed to take you yet."

"He will. Trust me. He will. If I can bring my sister then he has a deal."

"Goron has agreed to your terms, but she will have to work as a crewmember. When you are ready he will beam you aboard our ship and get you your own room where you can prepare for the ball. He will make sure that you have something to wear and get assistance with your hair and makeup."

"I'm afraid. I'm afraid to leave and I'm afraid that he might hurt me."

"There is no reason to be afraid. You will enjoy being at the ball. Goron will not force you to do anything you do not want to do. At any time you can say enough and he will send you right back here."

"Okay, I'll do it."
Chapter 18

The Holding Cells

Each of the cells aboard the _Andrea_ housing the humans held about one thousand people. The cells contained water, food and bathrooms with showers. All disturbances between people were immediately quelled by ceiling-based weapons. Repeat offenders were sent into space in full view of the other captives on monitors placed along the walls throughout the various cells on the ship. One moment a person might be fighting with a cell mate and the next he would be floating in space with a momentary look of terror on his face because the next moment he would be dead. His eyes would bug out, skin rip apart and then he would be a frozen, lifeless corpse. Watching the images of the corpses on the monitors encouraged the cell inhabitants to behave.

Once a holding area became full, the screens located throughout the area would make an announcement. The image on the screen was an animated version of a human. It expressed the announcement in ten major Earth languages.

_Please remain calm. You will not be harmed. This is only a temporary holding area. You will be released in a matter of days. During that time we ask that the following rules be followed: No physical activity is allowed between each other. No loud and disruptive behavior. Only one person allowed in each bathroom at a time. Do not switch beds. Failure to follow these rules will result in punishment up to and including death_.

In response many of the inhabitants yelled at the monitors and threw their shoes or other items they had with them hoping to get a response from the monitors or whoever might be watching, but none came. Some captives attempted to damage the monitors, but were immediately subdued by the weapons in the ceiling. The rooms holding military personnel were the ones that caused the most amount of trouble. The Euclidian used that as an opportunity to train the Ossies aboard the ship who often worked as crowd control at planetary outposts. Their challenge would be to keep the inhabitants of a cell under control without using the automated personnel control systems and minimizing harm to the precious cargo.

Rean was an Ossie who was assigned to a holding area that housed a platoon of U.S. Marines along with a group of prisoners. When he arrived he was cloaked, invisible to the occupants. Ossies have the ability to make themselves invisible to non-Ossies. He took the advantage of his powers to see what people were planning. There were several groups combing the walls looking for an exit.

"There has to be an opening in here somewhere. How else would people and equipment get in and out?" Stated a marine.

"They also have to be able to enter to replenish the food and repair things that get broken." Stated another marine.

"Marines, just keep pushing, pulling and tapping on every possible surface. I'm betting there's a way out through the top since we keep getting zapped when we try to climb the walls. We need to figure out a way to take out those devices. They seem to be protected by some sort of force field. Every time we throw something at it, the object just gets blocked and we get zapped," said Colonel Roberts who was the senior person in charge. "Does anyone remember how you got in here?" The colonel asked. The room remained silent.

Rean walked over to a group of prisoners to hear what they were planning.

"If we stick together we can get out of here. As soon as a door opens or someone enters we rush them. If one of those marines gets in our way we just take them out," stated a prisoner.

"What do we use for weapons?" Another prisoner asked.

"How about the night sticks from those MPs over there feeling up the wall?" Nine of you join me. First we'll ask nice then we'll punch their faces in if they say no. Lets' go."

Rean appeared in front of the prisoners cutting them off from their targets holding a two meter staff above his head.

"There will be no fighting in here. Now go back to your beds before I am forced to use force against you."

At first the group was frozen in place at the sudden appearance of the strange looking being before them. Then they decided to rush him.

"Let's get him," a prisoner shouted charging at Rean.

Rean crouched down and thrust the tip of his staff into the chest of the oncoming prisoner. He spun the staff to the left and clubbed the prisoner on the left side of his head knocking him to the ground. He spun the staff back to the right taking out three more prisoners. One prisoner came at Rean from his left side. Rean dodged his punch, grabbed him in his chest and flung him over the head of the remaining prisoners. Rean barred his sharp teeth and growled at the remaining prisoners.

"Get back to your bunks or I'm going to start killing people."

The prisoners ignored him and continued to come at him.

At that Rean vanished into thin air. A moment later he dropped down from the ceiling crushing a prisoner's skull with his staff. Before he hit the floor the prisoner was transported out into space in full view of those in the cell from the monitors along the wall. The prisoners hesitated, but then attacked Rean. Again Rean disappeared and then fell from the ceiling crushing the skull of another prisoner sending him towards the floor before he was transported out into space. This time the prisoners did not hesitate, but ran for their bunks.

Rean appeared in the middle of the room hanging from the six-meter high ceiling with one hand and holding his staff with the other hand. He yelled at the marines scanning the walls for an opening.

"Listen to me!" Started Rean. "There are no doors or exits out of this room. Even if there were you would be dead once you stepped outside this room. Just relax, remain orderly and enjoy the ride. Though you won't see me I will be here the entire time. If you step out of line I will have the pleasure of disciplining you."

"Excuse me. I'm Colonel Roberts of the Seventeenth Fighting Infantry," the colonel said walking towards Rean and looking up at him. "I demand to know where you are taking us and what you plan to do with us once we arrive."

"I am not here to answer your questions and your demands mean nothing to me."

"Fine, then we marines will fight you to the last man. We refuse to sit idly by while you take us to God knows where and do who knows what to us!"

"Did you not learn anything from the others who came after me? Do you really find these accommodations or lack of information intolerable?"

"We are marines not prisoners. We are battle hardened and will not be as easy to defeat."

"That is of no consequence to me. You will die all the same. Go back to your bunks or feel free to attack me. I will be happy to kill you before you are sent into space. You will find that I do not tire easily. Killing you will be an honor."

There was a moment of silence in the room then Colonel Roberts shouted, "Marines attack!"

All at once a large group of the marines pounced on Rean pinning him to the floor. Rean jumped up from the floor towards the ceiling grabbing one marine around the throat. Rean crushed his head against the ceiling. He quickly released the marine letting him drop to the floor dead. The marine was quickly transported into space.

Rean looked down and noticed two marines holding on to his staff. He flicked his left arm sending the two marines flying against the far wall. Rean twisted his body and fell from the ceiling spinning his staff above his head like a helicopter rotor. The marines watching him fall leaped to get out of his way. Those that did not make it out of his way had body parts crushed and broken. Those that were not killed attempted to crawl out of the striking range of Rean's staff.

As the marine's continued their attack Rean began to swing his staff like a baseball batter knocking marines to the far ends of the holding area with bone-crushing blows until they chose to stop coming at him. Rean stood there in the center of the crowd panting and baring his sharp teeth. He gave a signal and the dead and maimed marines were sent into space en masse. The people in the room shuddered to see so many of their comrades become frozen relics floating in space before their very eyes.

"Now get to your bunks unless you want to join your friends in space," Rean growled.

The crowd reluctantly broke up and headed towards their respective bunks. The occasional marine would make a run at what appeared to be Rean's blindside only to be cut down and transported into space. They were unaware that Ossie's ability to see from the sides of their head gave them amazing three hundred-degree vision, which left little room to sneak up on one.

Once the marines were back in their bunks Rean approached Colonel Roberts.

"Keep your men in line and you will keep them alive. Where you are going is not home, but it is a lot better than this place."

"I could do a lot better job of calming their fears if you could tell me more about where we are going and what happened to our homes and families."

"I am not here to calm fears. I am here to keep the peace. Your entire planet as you know it is gone. If you're lucky your family is on this ship somewhere and you may see them again in the future. Otherwise, consider them dead."

With that Rean turned and disappeared into nothingness.

***

At another end of the Euclidian ship a holding area full of regular civilians is in turmoil. The inhabitants are not nearly as disciplined as the marines.

"Why do those things keep zapping me?" Asked Brian.

"Honey, I don't think it knows the difference between us hugging and people attacking each other. It's probably best if we stayed apart."

"Why is this happening to us? Why would someone treat us like this?" A man screamed.

"Probably the same reason it happened to the Indians and Africans. Now that you are being locked up like an animal you don't understand why."

"We should all kneel down and pray to the Lord for deliverance from this captivity. Fighting amongst ourselves is not the answer", stated a priest.

"If God is going to get us out why would he let us get put here in the first place?" A man responded. "Maybe their God is stronger than ours."

"There is only one true God and he will deliver us if we only pray."

"Okay, you pray and I'll light this joint in my pocket and let's see who is the first to escape this hell hole."

The woman lights the joint and takes a long drag. "I can feel myself floating out of here already," she said smiling.

"May God have mercy on your soul."

"And yours."

A man by the food dispenser shouts out, "What kind of crap is this they are serving us? Looks like simulated meat, fish and vegetables. I bet it tastes like chicken but I'm not eating any of it!"

"Qu'est-ce qu'il a dit?" Asked a French woman.

"Il dit que le repas gouter comme poulet." Replied her husband.

The man at the food dispensers grabbed a piece of fake meat in his hand and held it up at one of the devices in the ceiling.

"You hear me?!" He shouts. "I am not eating this swill! I want real food!"

He then tosses the fake steak across the room. He is immediately shocked by one of the devices in the ceiling and falls to the floor stunned. He lays there in pain and looks around. No one comes to his aid. He's breathing heavily and moans a bit. He is angry. He hates the loss of control. He starts to whimper and then explodes to his feet shaking his fist at the device.

"Do you know who I am?! I'm CEO of one of the largest manufacturing companies in America. I am worth billions of dollars. You can't lock me up like this without a word. I demand to speak to someone in charge! Do you hear me?!" He shouts, tears streaming down his face.

He grabs a stack of the fake steaks and starts slinging them at the device. A moment later he disappears and shows up on the monitors floating in space.

Two men who were captured during the sweep comment on the demise of the CEO.

"That guy lost it. I mean the foods not great, but it's not worth dying over. For now I'm going to sit back and enjoy the ride."

"I hear you brother. I just wish our lady friend over there would share her joint with us."

"Me too, but we know that's not going to happen. We don't dare try taking it either. If we so much as sit on her bed, we get zapped."

"Tell me about it. At least they let us enjoy ourselves in the bathroom."

"They're probably watching."

Let them watch. It's not like they are going to post it on YouTube. Look she's heading for the bathroom I'm going to join her."

"Do you think that's smart?"

"The doors don't lock and I'll be out of the view of those damn zappers."

"With that he gets up and goes toward the bathroom door to join the lady who had just entered. He gets to the door and grabs the handle to enter, but is zapped before he can get the door open. Then an announcement is made.

"Only one person in the bathrooms at a time."

"Qu'est-ce qu'il a dit?" Asked a French woman.

"Une seule personne dans la salle de bain à la fois."

"Tampis."

The zapped man slowly stumbled back to his rack with his friend looking on flabbergasted.

"Man, you got to tell me what that felt like," his friend asked. "I always wanted to know what that feels like."

"It feels like someone microwaved me with a lightning bold. If you want to know so badly why don't you grab that bathroom doorknob yourself?"

"I'd rather keep my strikes down to zero if you don't mind. Two and you're out around here. Seriously out. And you never know what will cause you to be zapped."

"You keep yappin. I'm going to lie down and try to sleep off this pain."

"I wish they would show us some movies on those monitors instead of just space. It would probably help to calm people down."

"Yea, something like _Independence Day_ , _War of the Worlds_ or maybe a little _Cowboys and Aliens_."

"I was thinking about the Star Wars trilogy. The original one, not that crap with the Jar Jar Binks idiot."

"Now you're talking!"

At that moment Star War episode IV started up on the monitors.

"Oh my goodness," the man whispered holding his hand to his mouth. "Can you see this too?"

"Of course I can see it. I was zapped not made delusional."

"Could you dim the lights and turn up the sound please?" The man asked towards the ceiling as if he had his own private valet listening to him.

In response both happened.

"Thank you," the man continued. "If it's not too much to ask, could you follow this movie with Star Wars episodes V and VI and then play the Star Trek movie series?"

"I don't know what just happened man, but from now on I'm sticking with you. You think you could ask them to take that strike off of me so I don't get prematurely sent into space?"

"I don't want to press my luck. Just lean back and enjoy the movies."

Slowly everyone in the containment area moved towards the screens. Some stood, some sat on the floor. As the screens were above everyone's heads no one was blocked from viewing the movie. The restriction of sitting on someone else's beds was even relaxed. The mood inside the room suddenly changed.

Back in the operations room the Euclidians were noticing. "Kristi, I thought you had lost your mind when you set that video connection up. Go ahead and duplicate that feed in each of the cells. If some cells complain just switch the video. Get a Majorellen to help you translate as needed. This will certainly decrease our spoilage. I'll see to it that you get a bonus for this."
Chapter 19

Boarding the Andrea

Betty, Calvin and Dominique looked around at their new surroundings in wonderment and fear, not sure what would happen next or what their new adventure would bring.

"Here are three new crewmembers for you, approved by Captain Shisal," said Uan to a training person on duty in the indoctrination area.

She introduced herself to the three Earthlings in English. To them this was yet another strange alien. She directed them to seats in a room in front of a monitor built into a wall.

"I have to go now," stated Uan. "You will be in good hands here. When you have finished here you will be assigned a guide to help you get acclimated to the ship and teach you what you need to know to participate in the ball."

"How do we find you once we are done?" Asked Betty worried.

"When you are assigned your universal connection device my contact information will be programmed into it. Just say _gekola Uan_ into it and it will direct you to me."

"You're just going to leave us with this guy," fretted Calvin. "He looks like he might eat us."

"So do I, but you're still here. Just relax. Everything will be fine. Once you have finished your indoctrination we will meet back up and tour the ship together."

With that Uan walked out and a training video began in English giving the three an overview of the ship and their yet to be assigned UCDs.

..Your universal connection device will be assigned to you at the completion of this presentation. It will be tuned to your human frequency and cannot be used by anyone else. If it is lost it will be returned to you. If it is destroyed a replacement will be provided with the same settings and content. You will be asked to indicate next of kin when it is assigned to you as it will be turned over to them in case of your demise..

"I guess we are each other's next of kin," said Dominique.

"Uan is going to be mine," responded Betty.

"Are you sure about that? He didn't seem to be eager to jump into a relationship back at the apartment.

"I know. He will probably never love me, but he won't abandon me either. That's the most I can hope for."

"I guess that's good enough."

"For now yes."

"Do you smell ginger in the air?"

"Pay attention you two," interjected Calvin.

.. _The ship is vast and can easily be disorienting. Your UCD will help you by answering any questions you might have in any language. Take the ship's transport to get to your cabin or other locations aboard the ship on other decks. Use the corridor transports to reach distant locations on the same deck.._

"I'm in information overload," stated Betty. "My head is about to explode. This is way too much to take on at one time."

"I know what you mean," replied Calvin.

.. _You will now be greeted by your guide Cobalt. Enjoy your stay aboard the Andrea._

"Hello you three. I am Cobalt. I will be your guide over the next couple of weeks."

Cobalt held his hand out to greet them, but they were frozen in place to see the blue creature speaking to them in perfect English.

"Please take my hand. I promise I won't bite."

They reluctantly shook his hand.

"Come with me. I will have a UCD assigned to each of you and then give you a quick tour of the ship. Afterwards, I'll take you to your cabins so you can get settled. Later I will help you design and create clothing for tomorrow's ball. Greetings and salutations will be your first Euclidian language lesson."

"I don't think I'm ready to learn a new language," stated Calvin holding up his hands.

"You don't want to go to the ball and not be able to greet people. The captain wouldn't be happy about that. It would also set you back on your schedule to learn the language in two weeks."

"You want us to learn an entire alien language in two weeks?" Exclaimed Dominique.

"Don't worry. You only have to speak it and just enough to do your jobs. You won't have to write it or read it right away."

"Somehow I don't think that's going to be possible. I took French for two years in high school and I still can't speak a word of it."

"You'll do just fine. We have great teaching aids. Anyway, it's better than the alternative."

"Which is?" Asked Betty hesitantly.

"The captain will probably put you in one of the holding cells with the other Earthling captives or kill you. I'm thinking the latter."

"Why would he kill us?" Exclaimed Calvin.

"Because you are a member of the crew. Learning Euclidian is a requirement of the job. Crewmembers that refuse to do their assigned tasks usually die a horrible death. I can show you some videos if you like."

"You film the killings?" Asked Betty.

"They are actually shown throughout the ship."

"That must be motivating for the crew."

"I wouldn't complain. He permitted you to board the ship instead of staying in the wasteland, which is now your planet. He is giving you an adventure most people would kill for and he is going to pay you quite well by Euclidian standards. And if you perform poorly it will reflect negatively on Uan. Understood?!"

"Yes," they all responded.

"The proper response is _sah_! Understood?"

" _Sah_ ," they all said.

Cobalt helped them initialize their UCD and then took them into the ship's principal corridor where they were taken aback by the enormity of it all.

"Ohhhh myyyyy goodness. This ship is huge!" Exclaimed Dominique.

"How large is this thing?" Asked Calvin.

"It's about ninety kilometers wide, one hundred fifty kilometers long, and fifty kilometers deep," replied Cobalt. "The corridor is about one hundred thirty kilometers long."

"Is that why all those people are in those flying chairs?" Asked Betty.

" _Sah_ , and soon you'll be flying in them."

"No way," stated Dominique.

"Say _ahs_ for no Dominique," replied Cobalt. "The experience can be overwhelming at first, but you'll soon get used to it. The mauve lights point out the transport areas and the pink lights indicate where you can pick up one of the overhead chairs. Go ahead and lead the way to one of the mauve lights."

"Those aliens won't mind us walking between them?" Asked Betty.

" _Ahs_ , they are used to seeing new aliens all the time. Proceed to the transport area," requested Cobalt.

The three of them navigated through the passing stream of people to what appeared to be the door to the transport unit.

"This display lets you know how many seconds before the transport arrives. Our seconds are longer than yours. Ten of our hours is equal to one day, which is twenty-eight of your hours. We have one hundred minutes per hour and one hundred seconds per minute. I'm sure you can do the math."

" _Sah_ ," replied Betty.

" _Sah_ ," stated Dominique. "Too bad we can't read your numbers."

"Don't worry. Soon you will be able to. Did you notice that the people walking by were pointing their UCDs at you?" Asked Cobalt.

" _Ahs_ , not really," said Calvin. "I'm sort of getting the hang of this."

"They are using them to get information on you," said Cobalt.

"Isn't that an invasion of privacy?" Asked Betty.

"You have to be able to know who people are on the ship. You also have to know how to communicate with them. Knowing where someone is from and their attributes makes it easier to interact with them. You wouldn't want to challenge a person to Rashnan Ball if they weren't physically capable of playing or if the person would crush you in the match. It does however hide your personal data. Of course security has access to everything you see and do on the ship."

"So what does the UCD record?" Asked Betty.

"Almost everything!" Stated Cobalt. "It's an extension of you. It sees your environment. It knows the people who are around you. It tracks smells, sounds and on occasion will take an omnidirectional recording that it can later play back directly into your mind. All of the things that we experience are basically electrical impulses to our brain. This device can record those impulses and then play them back to our brains and give the sensation that we are reliving those experiences. Let me show you something, sort of speak. Hold my device and put your thumb here. Now close your eyes and take a deep breath."

"Oh my goodness," stated Betty. "I'm somewhere else. I can see a beach. I can hear the waves crashing against the blue rocks. I can smell the water. It's sort of a mint smell. How is that possible?"

"Everything we experience is via impulses to the brain. This device simulates those impulses. Here's the transporter. Step inside and say _trey_ out loud to let the transporter know you want to get to your cabins. Only one of you needs to say it, because your cabins are all next to each other."

Dominique stepped inside the transport, with the others close behind, and firmly said _trey_! The transport shifted sideways and then moved downward, which caught the passengers by surprise.

"That was startling," stated Calvin. "How does it do that?"

"These transports can move in every direction," replied Cobalt. "Be sure to hold on while you are inside these. Unlike your science fiction movies and TV shows, you will be impacted by the ship's movements and the movements of the transports. When we start moving through space at high speeds you will need to be strapped into a chair if you don't want to be hurt or killed by the sudden acceleration."

The transport stopped at the deck with everyone's cabin and the doors opened.

"Each of you face your UCD and state _trey_ ," requested Cobalt.

They each did as Cobalt requested.

"You should each now see a blue arrow on your UCD that points to your cabin. The length of the arrow indicates the relative distance from the target or next waypoint. Go ahead and use your device to find your cabin and enter inside."

Each of them reached their cabins, firstly surprised that the doors automatically opened as they approached them. At one-hundred square meters, the cabins were quite comfortable. A digital wall gave them the appearance of a realistic window unto the universe. This, along with the fluorescent ceiling kept the cabins from feeling claustrophobic. The cabin was full of electronic gadgets and comforts that the three were eager to investigate.

"Each of you take thirty minutes to make yourselves at home and then say _gekola Cobalt_ into your UCD and an arrow will lead you to me," shouted Cobalt from the hallway. "Don't be alarmed by your neighbors, who are from other planets, they won't harm you. See you soon," Cobalt ended walking off.

The three unpacked their bags and examined their surroundings. Within thirty minutes they met in the hallway and started on the first trip alone on the ship to find Cobalt.

"Did you see that funky toilet", said Calvin with excitement. "It squats down as you sit on it making the process a lot more comfortable and efficient. It cleans you up finishing off with a warm blast of air on your bottom. Then it helps you stand back up on your feet. Very cool!"

"I was checking out the makeup mirror that let me adjust the shade of my face in the mirror and when it had the shade I liked I said _sah_ and an arm came out and applied it. How do you beat that?" Asked Dominique.

"All I can say is I loved the storage space and feel of the bed," said Betty.

"Okay, we're on the transporter like the device instructed us. Now what?" Asked Calvin.

"It's moving. Let's see where it takes us once it stops," stated Dominique.

The doors opened and the arrows on their devices changed to point down the hall of the new deck. As the three walked down the hall the arrow stopped them in front of a door with a green colored light. The door opened and there stood Cobalt.

" _Stowtan bitar_ ," greeted Cobalt holding his fist at shoulder height. They all responded in kind. "That means, greetings shipmate."

"We also learned _stowtan char_ ," stated Calvin.

"Good. Only say that to the captain," warned Cobalt. "And be sure to have your fists touching and eyes downward."

"What is this place?" Asked Dominique stepping into the room viewing all the stations in the huge room with what looked like holograms of the people sitting at the stations.

"This is where we are going to make your clothing for tomorrow's ball. Let's find a spot and I'll show you how to do that. Here are three stations next to each other," said Cobalt walking towards the rear of the large room. Place your UCD in the carriage to the right of the screen to activate the system for you. Since you have never used the system before you will need to initialize it with your image. Stand on your pedestal and let the system scan you. Be sure to hold your arms away from your body and place your feet slightly apart."

Dominique went first, jumping onto her pedestal. After positioning herself on the pedestal a ring of light came up from the pedestal and disappeared above her head. She stepped down and a pseudo nude image of her appeared on the pedestal where she stood.

"That avatar represents your body and is what you will use to help you pick out clothing for yourself," stated Cobalt.

"But why does it have to be naked. I don't want people staring at my naked body," said Dominique.

"If you look around you will see that no one is staring over here. At any length, you will have to get used to being seen naked on the ship. There are plenty of activities where you are required to be naked to participate in them. You also don't want to ignore a call from an officer because you are naked. That could cost you a lot more than embarrassment."

"You two get up and create your avatars. Then we will view them on your screens."

Soon all three of them had their avatars standing on their pedestals and a similar image on their screen.

"You should see categories of clothing on square icons across the top of the screen. Hats, shoes, shirts, pants coats, underpants, undershirts and so on. Select the shoes icon. A row of icons should appear below the first row representing different shoe categories. Slide your finger over the icons to move the row to the left to see all forty categories. The symbol at the top left of the icon represents the category number. Our numbering system is so simple that anyone not learning it by the end of this exercise will be severely punished, because you are obviously too dumb to be a crewmember here. Take a moment to acquaint yourselves with the numeric symbols."

Each one looked at the symbols and noticed their progression.

"Who would like to try to explain the numbers to me?" Asked Cobalt.

Betty raised her hand and began explaining. "Zero is represented by an empty circle. One to six are indicated by short slashes around the circle. Adding three dots in the middle of the circle gets you to seven, eight and nine."

"Very good Betty. Did everyone understand that? The number nine represents our solar system. Our sun surrounded by six planets and our planet with its three moons. Everyone select shoe category twelve. Those are our formal shoes. A column of shoe icons should have appeared along the right side of the screen. The theme color for the ball is maroon. Use the wheel at the top left to select color 32. Select a pair of shoes that you are comfortable with. They will appear on the feet of your image."

"Now select the socks or stockings category. Choose subcategory seven for socks and stockings. Select the style that you are most comfortable with. Now Calvin, select pants and ladies select bloomers. Select pant subcategory fifteen and bloomer subcategory twenty-two. Pick the pair that you like.

"Cobalt, can you help me pick a pair of pants that would be most appropriate," asked Calvin.

"Item number six is worn by most men on the ship," replied Cobalt.

Cobalt assisted them with finishing the selection of items for the remainder of their outfits and then asked them to turn around and look at their fully-dressed avatars.

"Amazing! These clothes look great on us," stated Dominique.

"They sure do," said Calvin."

"Move your hands around over your avatars to move them around so you can see each side of the image," stated Cobalt.

"This is very nice Cobalt. How do we have these clothes made once we are happy with them?" Asked Betty.

"When you are ready to have your clothes made, press the yellow button at the lower right hand corner of the screen. Two buttons will appear. Pressing the one on the left will have the clothes delivered here and pressing the one on the right will have them delivered to your room. Press the one on the right."

"Are you saying that these intricate designs are going to be ready before the ball tomorrow?" Asked Betty.

"They will be ready tonight," replied Cobalt. "As a matter of fact they should be in your cabins within the hour."

"You've got to be kidding! Can we make anything we want and get it that fast?" Asked Dominique.

"Yes you can. Right now I need the three of you to face your screens and select the shirt category. Now select subcategory four, followed by seventy-nine and lastly one hundred eighteen."

Each of them complied as Cobalt requested.

"Excellent! You all passed with flying colors. You can go Rean."

An Ossie appeared after uncloaking holding a weapon in his hand. He nodded at Cobalt and then walked off.

"Where did he come from?" Asked Dominique startled.

"He's been here the whole time," stated Calvin. "Didn't you smell the scent of cinnamon?"

"How did you know he was here?" Asked Cobalt.

"I assisted an Ossie on Earth and he bit me so his enzymes would permit me to see him while he's cloaked."

"That's interesting," stated Cobalt.

"So why was he here?" Demanded Betty.

"To kill you if you failed to complete your task or learn our numbering system."

"So are we going to be constantly subjected to the threat of death for the entire time that we are on the ship?" Asked Dominique with disgust.

"Not at all," responded Cobalt. "But we do need to instill trust and set expectations with our new crewmembers. Make it through the ball tomorrow and you can consider yourselves through your probationary period."

"How about we just skip the ball?" Demanded Betty. "I don't think I could enjoy myself if I'm constantly being tested."

"Skipping the ball is not an option. I know it sounds arduous, but you will enjoy yourself. Plus it will be a good way to meet people and get indoctrinated into our society."

"I know they seem harsh, but they also appear to be fair as well. At least that is what I have learned from Uan," stated Calvin.

"If you are all ready I will help you get to the language center to learn greetings and salutations."

Cobalt took them out to the ship's principal corridor.

"Into your UCD state _gekola platum charmal_ ," requested Cobalt. "That will navigate you to the language center. I will meet you there. Just think, you finally get to try the transport chairs."

Cobalt walked off and the three of them were left staring at their UCD.

"Do you two have the directions listed as well?" Asked Calvin.

" _Sah_ ," they both replied in unison and laughed.

"Let's go then. I don't want to get shot for being late."

"That creature's gone right?" Asked Dominique.

" _Ahs_ , he's leaning against the wall just a few meters behind us," replied Calvin.

"How is it you can see him and we can't again?"

"Remember Uan? He's the same species. I worked for him and he wanted me to be able to see him when he was cloaked, so he bit me to place his enzymes into my bloodstream. Those enzymes permit me to see Ossies when they are cloaked."

"Hey you two, we better get going," insisted Betty. "The device indicates that we should walk down the hall a short distance."

They walked for a few meters and their devices indicated for them to stop in front of a pink light.

"Now what?" Asked Dominique nervous.

At that moment a chair popped out of the wall and stopped in front of Dominique.

"I was afraid of that," stated Dominique with angst. "You all know I don't want to be getting into no flying chair."

"We don't have much of a choice," replied Betty encouragingly.

Two more chairs came out of the wall and stopped in front of Betty and Calvin.

"Strap in everyone," said Calvin. "It could be a rough ride."

Dominique finished strapping in first. She noticed a blue light flashing on the arm of the chair and reluctantly pressed it. As soon as she did the chair took off for the high ceiling with Dominique screaming her lungs out.

"Ahhh, somebody help me!" She shouted as she disappeared into the distance.

Other chair riders passed by Dominique starring at her in incredulity, wondering why she would be screaming the way she was.

"We'd better go after her," stated Betty pressing on her chair's blue button.

Calvin quickly followed after her in his chair. Betty instinctively leaned forward to gain speed on Dominique. Soon she passed Dominique, but leaned back to slow down to her speed. She looked over to see Dominique holding on to the arms of her chair in panic with tears streaming down her face.

"Dominique! Lean back!" Betty shouted.

Dominique did as Betty requested and her chair started to slow down. Betty matched her speed so she could stay with her.

"I don't understand what's keeping these chairs in the air," stated Dominique exasperated.

"I'm sure it's some safe technology," replied Betty. "Look around us. There must be hundreds of people up here with us and everyone seems to be calm, but us."

"Hey you two. This is not bad once you get the hang of it, said Calvin catching up to the two of them.

"Dominique, take my hand," requested Betty. "We'll ride this out together."

Dominique took Betty's hand. They leaned forward and finished their high speed trip to their destination with Calvin close behind. The chairs slowed down and lowered themselves to the floor near a chair receptacle. The three unstrapped themselves and the chairs disappeared into the walls.

"Betty, thanks so much for getting me through that," stated Dominique hugging Betty.

"No problem girlfriend. Remember, I'm always going to be here for you."

"Wasn't that fun?" Said Calvin walking over to the two ladies.

"It'd be more fun if I kicked you in the balls," responded Dominique.

"Okay, so flying in a chair at tremendous speed high above the ground with no visible means of support could be considered scary to some. I'm more worried about the crazy guy who is still following us. We better get going. My UCD points back that way," stated Calvin pointing in the way they came.

"Lead on," said Betty pushing on Calvin.

Dominique slowly took up the rear still shaken by the experience. She looked back to see if she could see any evidence of the assassin and saw nothing. But she was scared just the same.

"Wait up you two," shouted Dominique running to catch up with Betty and Calvin.

Their UCDs pointed to a green light just a few meters away.

The three of them arrived in front of a door with a green light next to it that was pointed to by their UCDs. The door opened and there stood Cobalt. " _Stowtan bitar_ ," stated Cobalt greeting them with his fist raised.

" _Stowtan bitar_ ," they all responded.

"Now it's time for your most important lesson of your indoctrination. This will help you communicate with your new shipmates and integrate into our culture."

"Is someone going to kill us if we fail the final exam?" Asked Betty.

"Of course not," responded Cobalt.

"So why is that guy still following us around?"

"I assure you he is not in here and will not be involved in your lessons during this session."

Dominique nudged Calvin and motioned for him to look for the Ossie. Calvin looked around and then shook his head and shrugged to indicate that he saw nothing.

"Follow me and I will show you to your language pods. You will step inside and the doors will close behind you. Once inside you will watch a couple of holographic images go through a dialog in English and then repeat it several times in Euclidian. One of the images will then disappear and the remaining one will have the same conversation with you. Once you feel you have perfected the conversation you will take a final test. I will meet you here once you are done."

Each of them took their lessons and finished their test with flying colors. They rejoined Cobalt once they were done.

"Good job everyone," Cobalt said smiling. "Your UCDs have been set to remind you when you need to get ready for the ball tomorrow. You should put on your clothes and get ready at that time. Uan will come by your cabins when it is time to leave and escort each of you to the ball."

"That's it?" Asked Dominique.

"Yes, that's it. You will still need to get a medical checkup, learn the different ship's systems and get assigned a job. However, you can do that another day. For now wander around and enjoy yourselves. Get to know the ship and its people."
Chapter 20

Saving Family

Li Xiao's family did not have a basement or storm cellar that they could go to. There was no nearby underground garage, cave or large body of water where they could hide. She could only hope she could get there in time to save them. Li Xiao transported to her parent's house near her grandmother.

"Grandmother, where is everyone?"

"Li Xiao, where did you come from? Why are you dressed like that?"

"Grandmother, I do not have time to explain now. Please tell me where my parents are?"

"They went to a friend's place to see if they could get the generator going. You know the power went out everywhere. People from far away villages have come her talking about how the electricity is out all over. Cars, generators, radios, lawn equipment, none of it works. Flashlights work just fine. I don't know why they work."

"Grandmother please, can you look at my map device and show me where they are?"

"They are right down the street in town. I can't see your map thing without my glasses."

"Where are your glasses?"

"I don't know. I lost them in the dark."

"Forget it grandmother. Let's take the bikes. If I didn't think it would give you a heart attack I would just pop us to town."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing grandmother. Let's focus on where to go."

"They're just down the road in the village. One of the shops has a generator in the alley behind the shop. I think everyone in town is there. Nothing else to do with no electricity."

"I think I know the place. Grab your bike and come on. I'll ride ahead and see you when you catch up."

"You go. I'm slow, but I'll be there."

Li Xiao grabbed one of the bikes on the side of the house and rode quickly towards town. _Why today of all days are they away from the house?_ She thought. _I don't know why I'm worrying, the aliens are probably not anywhere near here. They probably won't even bother coming to this place with such few people. Here's the alley and there they are down there wasting time on that zapped generator_.

Li Xiao rode her bike quickly through the bustling alley towards her parents and several townspeople that she recognized. As she approached them they suddenly started to disappear.

"No! Stop! They're my people," Li Xiao screamed jumping off her bike and running towards the spot where her parents were last standing that now stood empty. "Grandmother!" Li Xiao shouted, turning to see she was gone as well. Her empty bike rolled towards her and then fill silent in front of her.

_My aunt and uncle!_ Li Xiao thought as she grabbed her transport device set the coordinates and pressed the transport button. She arrived to an empty apartment. They were both gone along with her two young cousins Ema and Maya. She fell to her knees and shook her head. _All these powers and I can't save my own family!_

Li Xiao lifted her device and clicked on the waypoint that she had set for her mother. She could see her parents and grandmother together in a holding cell. _They look and sound okay. I'll just go and get them_.

Li Xiao pressed the transport button over and over again, but she failed to transport. The _Andrea's_ defenses would not permit her to transport onboard the ship. Somehow having the transport device spared her from being captured, but did not permit her to save her family.

Li Xiao took a moment to watch her family in captivity. _Just like them to complain about no tea to drink after they've been captured by aliens_.

Li Xiao spent a few more moments watching her family before deciding to return to her apartment just as Cobalt arrived.

"Hello Xiao," Cobalt said hugging her. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Cobalt, they took my family. You have to help me get them back."

"I cannot Xiao. They are beyond my ability to assist you."

"What good was freeing those people from prison for them to just be put into another one?"

"You knew this day would come and it wasn't in my power to help you. Though many people are gone, there is still much you can do to help this world."

"There's not much left to help. Plus why would I want to stay here when everyone I care for is on your ship?"

"Then come with me. Spend the rest of your life with me. There is so much I could show you."

"I would just be a freak on a ship, in a world full of aliens unlike me."

"It wouldn't be as bad as you think. There are already earthlings who are part of the crew aboard our vessel. I promise you that you will fit in aboard the _Andrea_. It could also give you a chance to rejoin your family."

"When do I need to decide?"

"You should decide right away. You can get indoctrinated and become part of ship's company."

"Okay, but I need to let the people back at my apartment know that I am leaving. After your ships have passed through my area I'll come with you. Just signal me somehow."

"Our vessels have already cleared your area. We can leave whenever you are ready. Grab whatever you can't live without in one bag. Most everything you that you will need to survive will be provided for you onboard our ship."

"I didn't expect to have to decide so soon. I'm afraid," said Xiao laying her head against Cobalt's chest.

"You've done a lot of brave things Xiao. Trust me; this won't be anywhere near as dangerous as any of your prison break escapades. You will have to go through indoctrination, which can be a bit difficult, but I'm sure you will have no problem getting through it."

"Okay, give me an hour to get everyone situated and I'll be ready to go. Just meet me in my bedroom when you can."

"See you then," Cobalt stated kissing Xiao on the cheek and disappeared in a sparkle of lights.

Li Xiao pushed her transport button and returned to the garage where she left Denise, Pico, Morgan and his mother.

"Hello everyone," stated Li Yao walking up from the far side of the garage to avoid startling anyone. "We can go back to my apartment now."

"I thought we had to wait twenty-four hours before going back?" Asked Morgan.

"I assure you it's safe now," replied Li Xiao.

"So what did the aliens do exactly?" Asked Denise.

"They are removing people from our planet and placing them in holding cells aboard their ship."

"What about us?"

"We are safe. We can leave here, see who else is left and work on rebuilding our world."

"That's going to be easier said than done," said Morgan's mother interjecting.

"Mom, let's go by my foster mother's place and see who is left there. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you stayed with us."

"I'd prefer that you stayed in my place for the evening and tomorrow morning I can take you to your foster parent's place," stated Li Xiao.

"She's right Morgan. There's no reason to rush," stated Morgan's mother.

"Then it's settled. Let's start our climb up the stairs back to my place."

"Why don't you just beam us up?" Asked Morgan smiling.

"I didn't want make anyone feel uncomfortable, but it's not a bad idea considering the long walk back up to my place. Everyone give me a hug."

They hugged Li Xiao and in an instant they were back in her apartment.

"Morgan your mother can sleep in my spare bedroom. Denise, you can sleep on the couch or find an open apartment. Morgan, you and Pico can go to any of the open apartments on the floor as well if you like."

"If it's okay with you I would rather sleep in your recliner than be alone in some strange apartment."

"I'll second that," stated Denise.

"Okay with me. I'll get blankets and pillows for everyone."

Li Xiao returned shortly to pass out the items. "You should have everything you need to get yourselves comfortable here. There are candles in the kitchen for anyone who needs them. Feel free to eat and drink whatever you can find in the kitchen. I'll see you all in the morning."

Li Xiao retired to her bedroom and found Cobalt there waiting for her.

"Cobalt, I apologize, but I just need until morning to make sure my guests get to safety before I leave. I will pack tonight and I should be ready by 11:00 tomorrow morning. Why don't you spend the night here? I'll make it worth your while."

"Xiao, you are such a bad influence. I do have some down time, but I'll have to leave early. While I'm here I can teach you how to count in Euclidian."

"Great. We can count strokes."

"Strokes?"

"Yea, strokes. Get your clothes off and I'll show you what I mean."

"Oh."

"Oh yea," Xiao replied with a devilish grin.

They both undressed and Xiao mounted Cobalt.

"Okay, you count my strokes up ten in Euclidian and then I will repeat after you."

"Before we start I want to draw out our number symbols. They are pretty simple."

"If they are that simple then just draw them below my breasts."

"I'll try, but it may be difficult for me to concentrate."

"Do your best baby."

"Okay, first we start with zero pronounced ooo as in boo. It is drawn as a circle, which represents our sun. You place six dots around the circle representing our six planets. Ahh! Could you at least pause for a moment to permit me to finish my drawing?"

"Of course. I'll just sit here and squeeze while you finish."

"Good. Now three dots inside the circle represent Euclidia's three moons."

"That's easy. I got it. Now let's start counting," Xiao said impatiently sliding down on Cobalt.

"Ooo is zero," started Cobalt.

"Ooo I like that. More," said Xiao sliding down on Cobalt once more.

"Er is one."

"Errrr," Xiao repeated.

"Ah is two."

"Ahhhhh."

"Eu is three representing Euclidia the third planet from our sun."

"Euuuu."

"Somehow it sounds better when you say it. Oh is four."

"Ohhhh."

"A is five."

"Aaaaaa," responded Xiao stroking Cobalt faster.

"E is six"

"Eeeee."

"Erba is seven."

"Erbaaa."

"Ahba is eight."

"Ahbaaa."

"Euba is nine."

"Eubaaa."

"That's zero through nine," gasped Cobalt.

"Let me see if I got it," said Xiao increasing the speed of her thrusts. "Ooo, er, ah, eu, oh, a, e, erba, ahba, euba. Did I get it right?" Asked Xiao continuing to grind away at Cobalt.

"Yes, yes, that was perfect," replied Cobalt panting.

"Okay, I'm going to count from zero to nine two more times real fast to make sure I got it down, then I'm going to squeeze that special spot on your neck which sends you into ecstasy. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, yes," stated Cobalt, his voice cracking.

"Ooo, er, ah, eu, oh, a, e, erba, ahba, euba. Ooo, er, ah, eu, oh, a, e, erba, ahba, euba," Xiao repeated, then squeezed Cobalt's neck causing him to scream out and grab for her.

"Did you enjoy that Coby baby?"

"That was fabulous Xiao."

Xiao took a shower and then lied down in Cobalt's arms. As she fell asleep she thought about the fact that she would be sleeping in her bed for the very last time. The next thing she knew she was being awakened by a scream.

"Xiao, who or what is that in the bed with you?" Said Morgan excitedly.

"This is my friend Cobalt. Cobalt, that is Morgan. I saved him and his mother from being killed from some assassin from your ship."

"Hello Morgan," Cobalt greeted Morgan.

"So you're one of the aliens attacking our planet?"

"I wouldn't call it an attack per se, but we are mining your planet."

At this point Denise and Morgan's mother joined Morgan and Pico at the door.

"Are you people still trying to kill my friend Pico?" Asked Morgan pointing to Pico. Pico crossed his arms and gave Cobalt a stern look.

"I would think not as his presence here doesn't matter anymore. We should be gone in a few days and you'll probably never here from us again."

"I guess that's a bit of good news after a lot of bad."

"Li Xiao, were ready to go when you are," stated Norma.

"Let me get dressed and I'll be right there," replied Xiao.

The four left Xiao's room closing the door behind them.

"Cobalt, I should be back in less than two hours. I'll just meet you here."

"Okay, be safe out there. I apologize for angering them and getting you in trouble."

"It's to be expected. Their life has been turned upside down."

Xiao got dressed and went out to meet her guests.

"Is everyone ready to go?" Xiao asked.

"Yes," they all replied, Pico nodding.

"Morgan, show me where you live on this map," requested Xiao holding up her transport device to him. "Just use your fingers to move around the map."

"Wow this has amazing resolution. It's almost like live video. Is this a new version of Bing or Google maps?"

"Not exactly. It's something different."

"There it is right there. Can you take us to the corner? I'd like to get a look at our neighborhood before going into my house."

"Sure. If everyone's ready, give me a hug and I'll get you all to Morgan's place."

They all hugged Xiao and she transported them to the corner a few houses from Morgan's foster parent's house.

"How are you able to transport people around the way you do? Do you have some sort of magic powers?" Norma asked.

"No, I was given this transport device by Cobalt," said Li Xiao holding up her device. "It lets me jump from place to place anywhere on the planet instantaneously."

"You mean the guy from the ship that is attacking our planet gave it to you?" Morgan stated with disdain.

"Yes, that's the one. When I first met Cobalt I didn't know he was an alien. I certainly didn't know they were going to invade us. Let's take a look around your neighborhood to make sure everything is okay."

The five of them started their tour around Morgan's neighborhood.

The walk was quite eerie. It was a warm sunny day, but no one could be seen anywhere. There were no cars on the street. Even the birds were missing from the morning sky. If there was anyone left in the neighborhood they were staying hidden. When they arrived at the Johnson house there was no sign of life.

"Morgan, wait before you go in. Let me do a quick scan of the place to make sure everything is okay," requested Xiao using her device to look through the house. "It's all clear Morgan. Unfortunately there is no sign of your foster family there."

"Thanks Xiao. We should be fine for now," stated Morgan. "The grocery store down the street has plenty of canned food and water. Hopefully enough good people are left here to form a small, safe government."

"I guess this is where we say goodbye then. I'm going to join Cobalt on his ship. If I'm lucky I'll be able to reunite with my family, who were captured and placed in a cell there. Best of luck to all of you," Xiao ended giving each one of them a hug. She then pulled out her transport device and disappeared.

***

"Give me an update!" Shouted Captain Shisal.

"Captain, the mining is progressing according to schedule. We have three thousand, one hundred twenty mining vehicles out across their planet. They have a wealth of minerals here," replied the logistics officer, "though we are focusing our efforts on minerals identified by the Marketing Guild inventory of valuable inventories. Every available person has manned scanners and we are transporting as much of the processed goods as possible. These civilized societies make it a lot easier to collect what we need. They also have some simple things that we never thought of like Slinkys, hula hoops, pogo sticks, chewing gum and Velcro."

"Marvelous stuff logistics," replied the captain. "Make sure I get a sample of each one of those set aside for me."

"Aye, aye captain."

"Now tell me about the exotic animals you found."

"There are a lot to choose from captain. Each part of the planet has its own variety of animals. I would suggest visiting one of their so called zoos to get an idea of what you might like from each area and then we can set aside as many of the animals as you need. Images of the major zoos and their inhabitants are in the logistics inventory under animals."

"Got it. I'll get back to you with what I want after I have visited the places of interest to me. How much longer are we going to be here?"

"It will take a few more days to fill the stores captain."

"You will be leaving enough to keep the planet stable and livable right?"

"Aye, captain, there will be little danger to the inhabitants who will be left behind."

"Okay, keep me posted."

"XO, let's setup a ball for the crew. We can have it at the place where we have setup camp. Feel free to go ahead start scheduling shore leave in rotating shifts.

"Aye, aye captain," replied the XO.

"Operations, what was the result of our sweep of the planet's population?" Asked the captain.

"We have close to six billion people onboard captain. There are spots of unrest in some of the confinement areas where we have placed a large majority of military personnel or prisoners. We are using Ossies to resolve those issues. The general anxiety that is normally experienced by the captives has generally been assuaged by presenting them with video entertainment. So far we have only lost a few thousand people."

"Why don't we just anesthetize them?"

"We can never get the mixture of the gas just right. We tend to lose about 1% of our cargo whenever we attempt to gas people. That would take our losses to around sixty million, which amounts to a lot of credits."

"Okay, scratch that idea. Just do what is necessary to keep the captives pacified without losing too many of them."

"The video entertainment is a brilliant idea that seems to be working the best."

"Really? I find that pretty fascinating."

"It seems that this civilization spends a lot of time on it."

"So who thought of this idea?"

"Officer Kristi captain."

"See to it that she gets a bonus."

"Aye, aye captain."

"That's all Operations. Logistics, I'm looking to make a trip down to the planet to visit some of its zoos. What's the security situation?"

"At this point you would be in more danger from the animals than the humans on the planet. The few that are left are staying out of sight. Your personal shield should protect you from any projectile-based weapons, though there is little danger that anyone will be attacking you.

"Fine. Have Phoebe and a security detail to meet me in transporter room one."

"Aye, aye captain."

"XO, you have the bridge."

"I have the bridge," the XO replied standing with the other bridge officers as the captain walked off.
Chapter 21

Commander Filo prepares Attack

"Hi Yoyo, this is Jesmino. I've been having a few discussions with Euclidians down here and I think there is something you should know about the Alphas."

"What do you mean?" Asked Yoyo.

"The Alphas are a pretty brutal species," started Jesmino. "They have a culture of attacking nations and taking them over, typically killing or enslaving all of the inhabitants and taking all of their resources. When the Euclidians visited their planet to institute formal relations with them, the Alphas pretended to befriend them while learning their weaknesses. One day out of the blue while most of the Euclidian ships were out on missions the Alphas attacked the Euclidian killing millions of their people. Years later the Euclidian launched a counter attack destroying the Alpha planet. For now there is a tenuous peace between the two peoples."

***

Commander Filo decided that it was time to execute his plan to attack the Euclidian. He knew how to use the ship's controls to open a space portal. He convinced Yoyo to persuade the ship's captain to let him have a shuttle for a short mission. An Alpha ship will be cloaked and waiting to beam him out to safety at just the right moment. He will have to leave poor Yoyo behind as a casualty of war.

"Yoyo, let's climb onboard the shuttle. The captain said we could use it and I don't want to wait around for people to get suspicious," stated Commander Filo.

"How long will we be gone?" Asked Yoyo.

"Hopefully only a few hours," Commander Filo smiled to himself. He was about to fulfill the last part of his dream. With the four captains that attacked his planet dead, for the most part he could attack their planet. The Euclidian used their dimensional space drive to destroy his home planet. Now he was going to use the same technology to damage theirs. The shuttle didn't have enough power to destroy Euclidia, but it should cause significant damage from earthquakes and the like. He was hoping to kill a few million people with his stunt.

"So what are we doing out here commander?"

"Just running some experiments," he replied.

Yoyo wasn't convinced with his answer so she took off her glasses and asked him again.

"Commander, look at me and tell me the truth about why we are out here in the middle of space with the Euclidian planet coming at us?"

"Yoyo, in a moment you will be able to witness the pinnacle of my revenge against the Euclidian. I had the four captains of the ships that attacked our planet killed. Well almost four. The fourth one will be dead soon. He's still on a mission somewhere, but that XO we met is going to take care of him for me. Now I'm going to open up a space portal and rip through their planet."

"Commander Filo, this is Alpha ship _Lansing_ , come in."

"This is Commander Filo. I am eighty thousand kilometers from Euclidia in the center of its orbital path."

"We have you on our sensors commander and will rendezvous with your ship in seven minutes."

"Roger that. Did you hear that Yoyo? In a few minutes my ship will be here to cloak us. Less than an hour after that, the planet Euclidian will be just in front of us in all its glory. I will open a dimensional portal, we will be beamed away by my ship and we can watch the portal tear through their planet from a safe distance. If we are lucky it might even destroy it. The security measures, onboard the resource ship, were just too extreme to bypass unnoticed. On this shuttle though, it was much easier; especially with your power of persuasion over the crew. And with my ship's cloaking system we will be well hidden from the Euclidian's silly space monitors. The name Kenyon Filo will go down in history as the Alpha that carried out retribution against the Euclidians for their attack."

"That's why you are trying to kill millions of Euclidians?" Asked Yoyo.

"Yes, because they destroyed our planet."

"They only did that because you attacked them after pretending to be friends with them right?"

"We have a spiritual right to all lands. It has been prophesied that we will rule all lands and I mean to help fulfill that prophesy."

"Was the prophesy legitimized because it was foreseen by some visionary or because one of your rulers felt it would justify the killing of innocent people for gain?"

"We are a mighty race. It is our right to rule all. Why do you question that?"

"Being mighty doesn't make you righteous or even right."

"But here I am just moments away from a new wave of attacks which will bring the Euclidian to their knees. We have several hundred cloaked ships nearby waiting for the moment to attack. Once the destruction of Euclidia starts, the government will be too distracted to see what is going on in space. Our fleet will swoop in and destroy all the vessels, space stations and colonies in the Euclidian system before the government knows what happened. And I will forever be a hero to our people."

"Interesting theory. Too bad no one knows you're out here. Remember, we told the people in operations to forget who we were."

"Who cares what the Euclidians think. The ship coming to cloak us is aware of whom I am and the plans I made with our war minister."

"I'm thinking they are going to remember you for another reason."

"Really?!"

"Yes. Tell me commander, what's this command here for?" Asked Yoyo pointing at the control panel.

Chapter 22

Li Xiao boards the Andrea

Li Xiao appeared back in her bedroom and there was Cobalt waiting for her and he instantly hugged her.

"I've been missing you terribly and worried that you might be killed before returning to me. You could have even changed your mind, which probably would have been best for you; it just would have saddened me."

"How could I stay on Earth in its present condition? And how could I stay away from you since you made me love you? I was so afraid and then I was so curious. And now I don't want to be without you even though I don't know what the future holds for us."

"Okay, so let's get going. We should get started with your indoctrination. I'll take you to my quarters first so you can put your bag away."

"I'm ready," said Xiao sighing heavily.

Cobalt spoke some words into his UCD and moments later the two of them were in his quarters.

"This technology is so wonderful," said Xiao looking around Cobalt's quarters. "Cobalt, be honest with me. Are you okay with us being together?"

"Of course I am. If I wasn't I wouldn't have offered to have you join me."

"On our planet we are concerned when our mate is from a different race. What would your mother think if you brought me, an alien, home with you?"

"I don't have a mother per se, but if I did she would welcome you with open arms. She would understand the world I live in. Maybe you would like to see more of the world where I come from."

"Can we go now?"

"So to speak. Put on this helmet. I'm going to dial in my home city on Majorelle."

Xiao instantly found herself in the middle of an alien city. "Oh my goodness this is marvelous. Look at all the people. Can they see me?"

"No, you are only there in the virtual sense. You can see, hear and smell things as if you were really there. You can look inside buildings, sit in a vehicle or listen to music playing. Lean forward to move forward in the city and twist your body to turn. One of the neat things you can do with this device is look at an area over time. Say you wanted to see a building being built, the change in traffic or the effect of a river on terrain. You can do that by adjusting the start time and programming increments."

"How far back could I go? I mean can I see your planet being formed?"

"Only in the theoretical sense. We don't have recorded history that goes back that far."

"I love this device. It's really like I am there."

"If you're done I should probably get you to indoctrination."

"Okay, I'm ready to go. Will you be there with me?"

"Unfortunately not. But don't worry. You will be in good hands. Just don't freak out at the aliens you might see there."

"Okay, I'll try to stay calm."

When Xiao arrived for indoctrination, she was assigned a guide other than Cobalt. Xiao passed indoctrination, including creation of her ball gown and her first language lesson with flying colors. She created an intricate burgundy and white dress with a white mask. When she arrived at the language center she finished the initial lesson right away. She decided to stay in the language center to take additional lessons. She was hoping to learn enough of the language to become a diplomat for the Euclidian. She took the greeting and salutations, food, travel, military and mining operations lessons. When it came time for the ball she was ready to converse with the Euclidian guests. She even learned to write some of their language.

"Li Xiao, what are you doing?" Asked Cobalt. "You can't spend all day here. You are such an over achiever."

"Maybe you would prefer going back to my cabin and practicing counting," she said smiling.

"No time for that. Let's tour the ship. We should start with getting you a medical exam."

"Really? I hate getting those on Earth."

"It's not the same as you may have experienced on Earth. There's no pain and we provide a lot of services that can improve your looks and the way you feel."

"I guess I could tolerate it."

"So let's go to the transport chairs. I'll show you around the principal corridor before dropping you off at the medical center."

"Okay, if we must."

Cobalt and Xiao spent the rest of the day exploring the ship and the rest of the evening exploring each other.

***

The next day Cobalt and Xiao spent the day practicing the Euclidian language, holding each other, and then getting ready for the ball.

"Xiao, I'll be back in 30 minutes. I need to work with the interrogation team on a new captive. Once that is done I will come back and take you to the ball."

"That's fine Coby, I could use the extra time. Just don't be gone too long. I want to enjoy all the ball has to offer. And be prepared to mingle, because I want to meet as many people as possible, okay?"

"Certainly Xiao, just don't call be Coby at the ball okay?"

"Oh, I think it's such a cute pet name."

"Maybe so, but let's keep it to ourselves."

"Sure Coby baby," Xiao said smiling and kissing Cobalt on the cheek.

"Okay, I'm off Xiao see you soon," Cobalt stated walking out the cabin door.
Chapter 23

The Ryan Nebula

Calvin woke up in a deep sweat. He was somewhat disoriented waking up on the ship for the first time. Sitting on the edge of his bed he wiped the sleep from his eyes.

_What have I done?_ Stated Calvin slapping his hands on his head. _Have I sentenced myself to a life in a freak show with me as the main freak? I enjoy Uan's company, but will this force me into his servitude for the rest of my life? He may end up being my only friend and he's not much of a friend. Plus I have to learn this damn alien language._ Calvin thought pounding his hand into his fist.

I have a thought. I'll just get a Euclidian girlfriend. I'm sure one of the short ones would be into an urban legend such as myself. Dominique certainly doesn't seem to like me. She's so cute that I'm sure every alien on the ship will be after her. I need to take my mind off my loneliness and get some sleep. On Earth I was the guy who could find things. Here I can't even find my way back to my cabin without my UCD. I'll see what I can find on my monitor.

Calvin turned on his monitor and searched through the options. The alien entertainment wasn't of much value to Calvin since he didn't understand it. He decided to take a view at alien civilizations. He lied on his bed, fascinated by the civilizations.

"Use the emersion helmet for better viewing," a voice came from the monitor. A light from the ceiling pointed to what looked like a head covering made from nylon straps. Calvin tried it on and lied back on the bed to see what the difference would be.

Wow, this is fascinating and almost creepy. It's like I am right in the midst of these aliens and can touch them, but my hand passes right through them. I can't get any sleep like this. Let me see if I can find something more scenic.

Calvin flipped through the selections and found something that looked interesting. It was simply titled _Ryan Nebula - Stellar Creation._ Its image looked a lot like the pictures he'd seen of _Pillars of Creation_ from the _Eagle Nebula_. He decided to lie back and check it out. Then there he was floating in space.

This is just spectacular. I'm surrounded by clouds, dust and what appears to be newly forming stars. Those stars have to be millions of miles away and they are like they are right in front of me. I can't imagine how fast I must be moving.

Calvin dozed off as his mind continued to drift through the _Ryan_ _Nebula_ until he heard, "Dominique _mat blani_." Calvin was still woozy from being asleep, but eventually responded with, " _sah_."

Calvin's door opened and Dominique walked in wearing a blue silk-looking robe with an intricate design. "Wake up sleepy head," stated Dominique to Calvin.

"I was having the most amazing experience. I'm glad you're here though and I love what you're wearing."

"I just had this made for me. I just adore the facilities here, though I still miss home. How are you doing?"

"I was having moments of anxiety before going to bed about my decision to come on the ship. I didn't have a great childhood and my life before Uan showed up was tenuous at best."

"What do you mean? Tell me about your childhood," said Dominique sitting next to Calvin on his bed.

"Well, growing up in the projects was brutal. My father killed my mother when I was seven and went to prison. I got stuck with his crazy, drunken brother. I got tired of him hitting on me and left to live with a friend of mine. I learned to steal and fence things pretty quickly. In the hood, you could always find someone to buy what you have.

"So you sold drugs too?"

"Not exactly. I moved quantities of things around to people who might sell it on the street. The major suppliers like to stay off the radar. That's how I met Bo Sam. I was making a delivery of product to him and asked if I could get him some other stuff. I found what he wanted right away and he then made me an offer I couldn't refuse. He paid me well, gave me a great place to stay and provided protection from people who often wanted to attack me during deliveries. Though it was a scary job at times I didn't see an easy way out."

"So how did you hook up with Uan?"

"I was at Bo Sam's place getting him a drink. When I went into the room where Bo Sam was waiting for me and everyone was dead. Uan was just standing there holding his bloody spear. I believed he was going to kill me next, but I convinced him that I could be of use to him so he let me live. So what's your story?"

"I don't have much of a story. I grew up in a hick town in the middle of Louisiana. Because I'm small and cute every guy in town wanted to have their way with me. So I learned to fight and started carrying a gun. A club owner I knew thought I would be good at his door. Guys would appreciate me greeting them and if they got out of hand I could throw them out. Off hours I would chauffer people around in my limousine or do some bodyguard work."

"Why didn't you get married or go to college?"

"I wasn't interested in the guys in my town because they were just tired. My grades weren't good enough to get me into college and I'm not much of a studier anyway. I was going to save my money and move to Dallas, but then this thing happened. So now I'm going to outer space."

"How do you feel about that?"

"I was scared at first, but I felt it would be better than being on a post-apocalyptic Earth."

"You're right about that."

"I've been playing some of the sports games here and practicing my Euclidian."

"So I guess some of the aliens have been coming on to you."

"Yeah and it's been getting me horny and that's why I'm here."

"Excuse me?"

"Why do you think I'm wearing this robe with nothing underneath it? You don't expect me to sleep with an alien when there is a perfectly good human just down the hall from me do you?"

"You mean me?" Asked Calvin choking up.

"Yes I do," replied Dominique leaning into him. "So go take a shower or throw me out."

"I'm certainly not going to throw you out."

"Then hurry and go take that shower and be sure to scrub those naughty bits. I don't want to taste any funk on my tongue."

"With that kind of offer, I'd be happy to scrub the skin off my privates. By the way, have you tried your immersion cap yet?"

"No, I don't even know what that is."

"This is it," said Calvin holding his up to Dominique. "It should be on your shelf next to your desk. Go get yours while I take a shower."

"Okay, I'm game for anything once. I'll be right back. You go clean up," said Dominique going out the door.

Calvin told the access system to let Dominique in when she returned. Once Calvin stepped out from the bathroom Dominique was lying on his bed with her silk robe open, but still covering her sensitive areas. Calvin was wearing Euclidian boxers.

"That instant-dry system after the pulsating shower is a clever idea," Calvin said nervously.

"Stop talking and get over here. I want to taste you," demanded Dominique.

Calvin gulped and walked towards Dominique. She sat up, pulled away his boxers, flipped him onto the bed and started nibbling and licking at the tops of his thighs. Calvin gasped and tried to sit up but was pushed back down by Dominique's hand on his chest.

"Stay put big boy, I'm just getting started."

Dominique licked and nibbled Calvin's thigh up to his crotch, over to his other thigh and back again until he was quivering all over. Calvin could see her breasts swaying as she worked him over.

"Let me tell you how this is going to go Calvin," said Dominique licking her lips and looking up at him sexily. "It's been a while since I've been with a man so I'm going to take my time with you. I'm going kiss and lick every poor on your privates until you explode across my palate. I want you to just lay back and enjoy it. When I'm done I expect you to do the same for me. Once I have had my fill, you can have your way with me. How do you like that plan?"

"I think I'm going to explode right now."

"If you do I'm going get my gun and shoot you in the foot."

"Okay, I'll hold it."

The next couple of hours were a dream come true for Calvin. He had often thought of Dominique and wondered what it would take to attract a woman as beautiful and fiery as her. When she was near he could hardly breathe or speak. It wasn't a lust, but a real attraction. She was his Cleopatra and Joan of Arc.

When they started making love Calvin had her put on her emersion helmet. Calvin could feel himself floating in space again, but this time it was different. He could feel his entire being drifting away as their bodies intertwined. It was if he was part of the universe and she was a constellation about which he revolved. Her scent, her touch, the sight of her eyes on him made him weak all over. The deeper they went into the _Ryan Nebula_ the deeper he wanted to go. Not just into the nebula, but into her heart. His body melted into hers until he no longer had a sense of himself. An hour later he came to lying next to her.

"That was just heavenly Calvin," stated Dominique. "The helmets were a great idea. I guess I'm going to have to make frequent visits to see the rest of space with you."

Dominique hugged him and Calvin kissed her tenderly on her lips. She gasped and pushed him away. "That was nice Calvin, but we're still just friends so don't get it twisted. And if you tell anyone about our little tryst I'll cut your balls off. See you tomorrow," stated Dominique blowing him a kiss and walking out his door. Calvin just collapsed on his bed with a smile.

Chapter 24

Medical Exams aboard the Andrea

"Okay, I admit it, this is great. It just took me a while to believe this crazy contraption wouldn't fall to the ground and kill us. How fast do you think these things can go?" Asked Dominique.

"Who knows," replied Calvin. "I know it's faster than I can stand. It gets to the point where I can't breathe sometimes and I have to back off."

"Do you want me to ask one of these guys?" Asked Betty. "I get to going as fast as I can stand it and one of these guys zips past me."

"Is your Euclidian that good?" Asked Dominique. "I'm still learning basic stuff."

"I spent as much free time as possible in the language rooms. I don't want to be killed or thrown into the captive cells for not picking up the language quick enough."

Betty waves at a passerby. "How fast can these things go?"

"The chair has no top speed," the person responded. "The top speed is whatever you can stand. As you lean forward the chair's speed will keep increasing until you pass out and then the chair will set you down."

"Thanks!"

"You don't say thanks when someone does you a favor. You just say _got it_ , _righteous_ or _brotherhood_." With that he sped off.

"Hey you two," shouted Betty. "Shouldn't we be getting to the medic?"

"You are such a party pooper," responded Dominique. "But you are probably right."

The three made a U-turn and headed for the medical center to get their checkup.

"Hello I am Valera. I will be your medical technician today. I will tend to your medical needs. I speak some English and will be able to communicate with you."

"Hello, I'm Calvin and this is Betty and Dominique. I love your name."

"Yes, Valera is nice to hear and easy to say, but try spelling it. My name is spelled with eight letters and two numbers, Vao2le4roa. Somehow it is pronounced Valera and my mother was fine with that."

"So is the examination going to be painful?" Asked Dominique.

"Not at all. Not only will you enjoy it, but you will love how you look and feel once I am done with you."

***

"I'm very experienced in genetics," said Valera. "My procedures will be effective no matter which species you belong to. I work at the cellular level and can address most of your ailments using cellular regeneration. While I can't make you live forever, I can give you a healthy life as long as you are alive."

"Should we make separate appointments?" Asked Dominique. "You probably won't be able to treat us all at the same time.."

"Not to worry. I am assigning an assistant to each one of you. Start by taking off your clothes and walk through this opening," said Valera pointing to what looked like a disco doorway. "It will cleanse your skin and perform an initial scan of your skin surface. I will need you to stop once you are in the center and raise your spread your legs. Calvin I will need you hold your penis up momentarily."

"I'd be happy to. Do you think you could get rid of the extra hair down there?"

"Yes, but not during this procedure."

"Since I'm the man I guess I'll go first," said Calvin starting to strip down. "Don't you ladies get any ideas."

"This is not a one-at-a-time exercise," insisted Valera. Everybody get naked now! If it makes you feel any better your assistants and I will be naked as well."

"As if that helps," complained Dominique. "We wouldn't even know what to get excited about on your bodies."

"You will in time," smiled Valera.

Betty and Dominique removed their clothing along with the assistants who snickered in the process. The two ladies followed Calvin through the device, who waited for them on the other side to discuss the experience.

"What did you think? I felt all tingly across my skin and somehow I just feel clean. Look at my nails even," Calvin said holding them up to the two ladies.

"Calvin, I might be more into your cheerfulness if I wasn't standing here naked," said Dominique with a sneer.

"Why are you bothered Dominique? You have a gorgeous body."

"Thanks, now stop staring at it."

"Calm down Dominique," urged Betty. "They said we had to be available at a moment's notice even if we are naked. Plus we don't want to anger anyone who may be following us."

"This way," each assistant stated in Euclidian.

"Sorry Calvin," Dominique said turning back towards him. "I like your body too."

"Thanks. Other than this recent captivity, I've been working out," replied Calvin flexing his muscles. Dominique just smiled.

Each of the three were led to a padded table and requested to lie on their back.

"Your assistants only speak Euclidian, so please respond in kind when they are speaking to you," stated Valera. "They will start by removing moles, warts, scars, bumps, tattoos, wrinkles and anything else that is not a normal part of your skin. Your assistant will touch a spot and then use a skin mender pen to address the spot. They will ask if you want the spot addressed. Say ' _ahs'_ if you do not want an area modified. You can watch the progress of the treatment on the monitors above you. Grab the monitor and pull it down towards you as needed when you are flipped over to do your other side. I would suggest that you get your tattoos removed. We can later redo them using a safer method. If you are ready they will begin," Valera ended motioning to the assistants to start.

Each of the assistants probed, cleared and mended the skin of their patients, returning them to their youthful form. For the most part the three enjoyed the treatment.

"This is better than any spa treatment I have ever had," stated Dominique. "I just wish it included a massage."

"You're right about that," stated Betty. " _Ahs_!" Shouted Betty. "Valera, how do you say wait in Euclidian?"

" _Ema_ ," responded Valera.

" _Ema_!" Stated Betty to her assistant. "He pointed at my areola. He's just going to remove the mole and not my areola or nipple right?"

" _Sah_ , he will only remove the mole."

"What about the hair around it?"

"That's normal so that will stay."

"What if I want it removed?"

"Yea, I like that idea myself," Dominique chimed in.

"Permanently or just this one time?" Asked Valera.

"Permanently," they both said in unison laughing.

"Just point where you would like the hair removed permanently and say, _unda tepa sita_ ," said Valera.

"I like that idea," said Calvin. "Now I can finally have smooth balls and butt crack."

"Shut up Calvin," yelled Dominique. "We don't want to hear that."

"Oh you can have smooth breasts, but I can't have smooth balls."

"Stop it you two. Valera, how do you say please and thank you?" Asked Betty.

"You do not say those things in the Euclidian language. You tell people what you want they do it or not. If someone does a good job you just say that instead of saying thank you."

"That sounds a little cold."

"No, it is just not in our culture."

"Goodness, do they have to be all up in my butt crack?" Stated Dominique angrily.

"They have to check everywhere Dominique," replied Valera. "They are not interested in you sexually."

"Fine, then _unda tepa sita_ while you are in there."

Calvin and Betty both laughed. Dominique smiled and shrugged.

"Can they adjust our breasts," asked Betty shyly.

"They can tighten the skin around them to make them perkier. If you want to decrease or increase their size, you will have to do that on your own time," responded Valera.

"What about adjusting my penis size?" Asked Calvin.

"Yes, that can be done, but once again you will have to do that on your own time. However, you should be careful how large you make it, because that will limit your interspecies options."

"Wow, I never thought of that. What kind of options is available to me?"

"This is not an anatomy class or dating service. You will have to figure that out on your own. They are going to process your eyes now removing calcium deposits, floaters and any corneal abrasions. We will also adjust your eyesight so you have perfect vision for your species."

"What about changing our eye color?" Asked Betty.

"On your own time," replied Valera.

"Of course."

"Next we will adjust your hearing, then your joints and check all your organs. During those tests we will remove any malevolent organisms and boost your immune system. This is what permits us to visit planets without worrying about getting sick or dying. The last thing we will do is your teeth. All fillings, crowns and dentures will be removed and your teeth will be restored to normal health. Since you won't be able to talk we will do that last."

"Can you straighten or whiten our teeth too?" Asked Calvin.

"On your own time," replied Valera, which Betty and Dominique echoing her response.

"We are going to be busy on our own time," chuckled Calvin.

An hour later the three of them emerged from their medical treatments and stood in front of mirrors examining their refurbished bodies.

"So how do you all feel?" Asked Valera.

"Great!" They all responded in unison."

"I am glad to hear that you are happy with the procedures. You can get any of the cosmetic work you want done at any time. We do not do it here though. Use your UCD to find a zuni fabur or look for a blue light of this color by a door," Valera said showing them the display on her UCD.

"The assistants did an amazing job Valera," stated Betty.

"I totally agree," stated Dominique.

"Ditto," said Calvin.

"Okay, time for you all to go. Feel free to come back any time you are having medical issues. Remember, a brilliant smile is the perfect start to a brilliant day," Valera ended smiling.
Chapter 25

Going to the Ball

"Uan mat blani," said a voice in Betty's cabin.

"Sah," replied Betty not knowing what else to say.

The door to Betty's cabin opened and there stood Uan dressed for the ball.

"Uan you look simply resplendent," stated Betty smiling.

"Betty you look quite ravishing yourself. This is going to be a great evening."

"Yes it is. Let's go get the others."

Uan and Betty entered the corridor to find Calvin and Dominique nervously waiting for them.

"Stowtan bitar everyone," Uan greeted them.

"Stowtan bitar Uan," they responded.

"You all look lovely. I'm sure you are going to have a wonderful time at the ball this evening. I'm going to take you to the ball and introduce you to the captain. After that you will be on your own. I urge you all to stay as long as possible and try to greet people. Use your UCD to connect with people. You can speak English into it and it will translate your statements into the local language of the listener and vice versa. I hope you are inspired by this opportunity to embrace your new lives as a great new adventure. When you are ready to return to the ship just say _trey_ into your UCD and you will arrive safely back in your cabins. Now if you are ready, everyone say _jestala_ into your UCD to arrive at the entrance to the ball."

They did as Uan requested and there they were at the entrance to the ball.

"What do you think of the place?" Asked Uan.

"This place is swank," replied Calvin.

"I really love it," stated Dominique shaking with anticipation.

"I think we're going to have fun tonight," said Betty. "Can we meet the captain right away so we can get to the fun part?"

"Sure," replied Uan. "The receiving line is over here. Just remember what I taught you and you will be fine."

_There's that smell of ginger again_ , Dominique thought to herself.

The three waited nervously for their turn to meet Captain Shisal hoping that they wouldn't say anything that might get them killed.

"Look at this place. Someone put a lot of work into it to make it look like a Euclidian event. The walls and floors are covered in elaborate tapestry," noticed Betty.

"How are they making them sparkle the way they do?" Asked Calvin. "And look at the ceiling with that elaborate scene of space that keeps changing. What are those floating disks doing? Look it just took that guys plate and napkin. How cool is that? Floating bussers."

"Speaking of floating, look at those floating, luminescent chandeliers," stated Dominique. "They are just divine. And did you check out all the people? This is like the Chalmun's Cantina on steroids. Is that the captain there with the gold collar on his coat?" Asked Dominique with a quiver in her voice.

"Yes, that's him," replied Uan.

"Wow, he is huge. I don't think I can do this."

"Look at him Dominique. You see how he is smiling and greeting everyone?"

" _Sah_."

"Well he is excited to meet everyone here at the ball and he is especially looking forward to meeting the new crewmembers from Earth. Remember he personally approved your request to join his crew."

"Okay, I'll try to relax."

"Trust me, you will enjoy meeting him and you are going to have tremendous fun tonight."

When they finally reached the captain Uan greeted him first.

" _Stowtan char_. _It's good to see you again captain. This looks to be a wonderful ball."_

" _Stowtan bitar_ Uan _. I hope you are doing well._

" _Yes I am captain. I would like to introduce you to three new crewmembers from this planet._ "

" _Stowtan char, sheeman_ Calvin."

" _Stowtan bitar_ Calvin _,_ " replied the captain.

" _Stowtan char, sheeman_ Betty. _I'm excited to be your new crewmember._ "

" _Stowtan bitar_ Betty _,_ " replied the captain. " _I am glad to see you are taking time to learn our language._ "

" _My pleasure captain. I am hoping to be a diplomat for you some day._ "

" _If you keep learning the way you have I'm sure you will do just fine._ "

" _I will captain._ "

" _Stowtan char, sheeman_ Dominique."

" _Stowtan bitar_ Dominique _,_ " replied the captain. " _You are quite lovely. I'm glad you joined us tonight._ "

Dominique panicked and looked at Uan wide-eyed not knowing how to respond. Uan started to come to her rescue, but Captain Shisal waved him off. Captain Shisal raised his UCD to his head and motioned for Dominique to do the same. Dominique did so and the captain spoke to her again.

" _You are quite lovely. I'm glad you joined us tonight_ ," Captain Shisal repeated into his UCD. This time Dominique heard it in English from her UCD.

"I am honored to be here captain," Dominique said smiling and wiping away her tears. "I really love your outfit. Maybe we could dance later."

Captain Shisal let out a hearty laugh. "Why wait." He took her hand led her to a nearby dance floor and waltzed around with her for a few moments. A crowd gathered around them, but Dominique could only see the captain and for now she was the bell of the ball. The captain soon ended the dance and bowed to Dominique before returning to the receiving line.

"Dominique! What did you say to him to get a dance you lucky thing you?" Asked Betty gushing.

"I just said we should dance later and he dragged me out here. I have no idea why I said that. It just sort of blurted out."

"Well it seems like you said the right thing. I don't think he's going to be killing you anytime soon. I guess you feel like an idiot now for being so nervous."

"I'm just glad we are finished with the introductions. Let's get some drinks and have some fun. I'm going to do a lot of dancing tonight."

"It looks like you three are going to be just fine at the ball," stated Uan joining the group.

"So what should we do first?" Asked Calvin excitedly. "After all the tension of the indoctrination I am ready to have some fun."

"How about some drinks?" Asked Betty. "I want to try that Tammarian grog I keep hearing about."

"Make that two," stated Calvin.

"Make it three," chimed in Dominique. "I can't wait to try my UCD again with the bartender."

"Why not make it four. I quite enjoy them myself," stated Uan.

The four walked up to the nearest bar and used their UCD to order three Tammarian grogs.

"I can't believe it worked that easily," stated Calvin. "Cheers everyone. To our new adventure."

"To our new adventure," repeated Betty, Dominique and Uan. They all clinked glassed and took a sip.

"Wow, now that's a drink," stated Calvin.

"No kidding," agreed Dominique.

"Is it okay if I take Betty away from you two and show her around?" Asked Uan.

"Of course," responded Calvin.

"Yes, we'll be fine," added Dominique.

With that Uan and Betty disappeared into the crowd while Calvin and Dominique decided to look for food.

***

"Cobalt and Li Xiao arrived at the ball in matching outfits that drew the attention of the crowd. Everyone wanted to know who the masked woman was, except of course for Uan. He had a good idea and he was not happy to see her again.

"Betty, excuse me for a moment, I need to say hello to an old friend," said Uan walking towards Li Xiao.

" _Stowtan bitar_ ," Uan greeted Li Xiao angrily.

" _Stowtan bitar. So good to see you again_ ," Li Xiao replied happily in perfect Euclidian.

"I wish I could say the same. At least you had the character to not pretend you don't recognize me. I'm surprised that you speak Euclidian."

" _I'm a crewmember on the Andrea. I'm expected to speak Euclidian._ "

" _Cobalt, this traitor interrupted me when I was attempting to kill an escapee for the captain. She could have jeopardized the entire mission_."

" _He is not my handler_ ," Li Xiao broke in continuing in Euclidian. " _If you have a problem with me, then talk to me_!"

" _Maybe I should talk to the captain. I'm sure he would love to hear your story_."

" _Uan what is this I hear_ ," said Captain Shisal walking up. " _From what I can tell the mission has been a success_."

" _Stowtan char. I am Li Xiao a new crewmember. Forgive the disturbance my captain_ ," Li Xiao interjected. " _It's a personal matter that we can handle in the arena_."

" _Stowtan bitar Li Xiao. You have made quite a brave challenge. An Earthling challenging an Ossie in the arena. That should draw quite a crowd_."

" _I will make quick work of this feeble Earthling_ ," boasted Uan.

" _I agree that I am hardly a match for someone with your powers_ ," stated Li Xiao. " _So we should make it more of a fair fight. You can't use your cloaking ability and you must take a shot of beer before the fight_."

Uan smirked, " _You've been tracking me haven't you_?"

" _Is that a yes or no_?" Insisted Li Xiao.

" _It's a yes and when you lose you must leave the ship_."

" _You go too far Uan_!" Cobalt protested. " _She has a right to be on the ship_."

" _She should be killed for her behavior, so banishment is letting her off lightly_."

" _You will beat her and then throw her off? I don't see that as letting her off lightly_ ," responded Cobalt.

" _Quiet you two_!" The captain ordered. " _Li Xiao made the challenge it is up to her to accept or reject the conditions_."

" _I accept the conditions_ ," stated Li Xiao. " _And if I win you stop your attacks against Pico and Morgan and I get to have your pulse rifle_."

Uan looked at the captain for his approval to accept and Captain Shisal nodded. " _I accept your offer, but there is little risk from my side. It will be good to see you off our ship_."

" _Then it is settled_ ," stated Captain Shisal. " _We'll setup an arena here a few days after the ball. Until then I don't want to hear any more acrimony at my ball. Is that understood_?"

" _Sah char_ ," they both responded.

"Cobalt, thanks for bringing me to the ball," stated Xiao. "I apologize for the disruption, but I needed to do something to protect the Earthlings. I'm certain I can defeat him. Plus I wanted to meet the captain."

"I was happy to bring you to the ball," replied Cobalt. "But I don't understand why you would risk your position on the ship to help strangers. What are you doing with your device?"

"I'm placing a waypoint on the captain."

"Have you lost your mind?"

"I want to be able to find him to make a deal for my family."

"Why do you think he would agree to a deal for your family?"

"I believe I could find him something valuable enough that he would free my family in exchange for it."

"You are taking a big risk Xiao. The captain is not one to be bargained with. As a crewmember he may feel if you find something it belongs to him anyway."

"Then I have to make sure that it is so unusual that he is willing to make an exception."

"Well, if anyone can do it you can."

"Thanks for your confidence in me. This will mean that I have to spend some time on Earth."

"Do what you need to Xiao, just stay safe."

"I will darling," said Xiao.

***

"Uan, who was that earthling woman you were speaking to," asked Betty. "And what were you to talking about. You looked angry."

"That is the woman that saved that alien I came here to kill. She must have used technology from this ship to beam him and his friends out."

"So what were you discussing?"

"She challenged me to a fight in the arena to save her friends. I accepted and when I win she will be thrown off the ship."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because she betrayed our trust and does not deserve to be part of the crew."

"That sounds cruel even for you."

"It is the right thing to do. Instead of discussing that interloper we should be enjoying the ball. Can I get you another Tammarian grog?"

"You're right. I want to try something different. Just surprise me."

"I would love to."

***

Xiao decided that she would recover the twelve zodiac statues that were originally created for the Chinese fountain at Haiyantang in the Yuanming Yuan Garden. Four of the statues were located at China's Poly Art Museum and one at the Capital Museum in Beijing, which she easily retrieved. Two were being held in a Christie's warehouse, which Xiao also retrieved. The whereabouts of the other five were unknown. Xiao searched several museums and known collector's houses to no avail. She finally gave up storing the seven she had found in her apartment before returning to the _Andrea._

***

Goron had Pura beamed to the Andrea and got her a temporary room to use to prepare for the ball. Pura was given an intricately woven dress that felt as light as a feather. It had a blue and red pattern that sparkled as she held it. At first glance she felt it would be too big for her. But when she put in on it seemed to caress her body. It held in her tummy, lifted her breasts and hugged her buttocks ever so firmly. A personal assistant was assigned to assist Pura.

"Stowtan bitar Pura I am Inxa your assistant. I help you ready for ball. My English not so good."

"Hello Inxa. Thanks for agreeing to help me."

"You must greet people with stowtan bitar."

"Oh, forgive me. Stowtan bitar Inxa."

"Good. Sit here," requested Inxa placing her in front of what looked to be a mirror. "I change face you tell me when you like."

Inxa pressed some buttons on the mirror. Pura looked into the mirror and noticed her face was shaded as with makeup, her cheeks were rosy and she was wearing pink lipstick.

"Is this my face?" Pura asked. "Or is this some sort of odd reflection?"

"This your face."

"More pink," said Pura pointing at her cheeks. Inxa responded by making her cheeks less and less pink until Pura asked her to stop.

"Now smooth out," Pura said making a rubbing motion over her face. Inxa responded by blending the pink more into her natural skin.

"Perfect!" Pura said smiling.

"More red," Pura said pointing at her lips. "Stop, now darker. There that's it."

"Now we do hair," Inxa stated. "Look at self." Pura watched her image as different hair styles came up.

"That's it," said Pura when she saw a circled hair design that looked elegant and futuristic at the same time.

"Maybe highlights?" Inxa asked.

"Sure," replied Pura.

"Oh my goodness," Pura said shocked to see her hair sparkling.

"You no like?"

"I like very much. When you said highlights I didn't think you meant this."

"No understand, but long as you happy. We done now."

A knock at the door signaled that Goron had arrived and it was time to go to the ball. Pura opened the door not knowing what to expect. There was Goron smiling with his shiny green teeth. He was still an alien, but somehow she was comfortable in his presence. He was wearing a tight fitting, long-sleeved shirt that glittered in the light from the hallway. It looked to be made of silk and was soft to the touch. The sleeves clung to his muscular arm and flared at the wrists to reveal what appeared to be a bracelet made from diamonds. _However, the large links couldn't possibly be made from diamonds could they_? She thought.

Goron's pants were made of the same material as his shirt, but slightly darker. They were snug around the waist and loose on his legs flaring at the bottom around his shiny maroon shoes.

"Stowtan bitar Goron," greeted Pura.

"Stowtan bitar Pura," Goron responded nodding in approval at her Euclidian greeting.

"Stowtan bitar Pura. You look stunning," Stated Dexin. "I hope you don't mind me joining you to act as translator."

"Thank you for the compliment," replied Pura. "I don't mind you being here at all."

"Goron wishes to give you this flower from our planet in tribute to your great beauty. Inxa can affix it to your hair."

Goron handed the flower to Pura and Inxa attached it to her hair.

"I would be honored if you would join me at our ball," Goron stated in slow English holding out his arm.

"I would be delighted too," Pura said gleefully.

Pura took out Goron's outstretched arm and headed into the corridor. Somehow she felt like beauty and the beast. Though Goron had a handsomeness to him, he certainly wasn't the typical human. His hand felt a little cool to the touch, and strong as if she was holding a piece of stone. His skin was smooth and firm, not soft like human skin. She also detected the scent of ginger which could have been his cologne.

Pura walked into the ballroom and was mesmerized by all the aliens she saw. Most of them were Euclidian, but some of them were from other planets. Somehow it seemed normal and yet again other worldly. She was even surprised to see other humans there, but had yet to meet them. There was also a stronger scent of ginger in the air. _I wonder if that is natural for the Euclidian_ Pura thought.

A female Euclidian approached Goron smiling. " _Stowtan bitar brother_."

" _Stowtan bitar sister_ ," replied Goron hugging her. " _This is my new found Earthling friend Pura_ ," stated Goron pointing to Pura.

" _Stowtan bitar Pura_. _Sheeman Vagina_ ," said Vagina holding out her arm.

"She said her name is Vagina and she is holding out her right arm for you to take," Stated Dexin.

Pura grabbed her arm with her right hand and covered her smile. "What did you say her name was?" Pura asked looking at Dexin.

"Vagina," replied Dexin who smiled understanding the question. He explained Pura's reaction to Vagina who laughed.

"Maybe we could call you Gina while we are on Earth at least," suggested Pura.

Dexin explained to Vagina and they both nodded.

" _I think you just made a new friend_ ," Goron stated to his sister placing his arm on her shoulder. They all laughed.

At the end of evening Goron took Pura back to her room aboard the Andrea with Dexin nearby.

"Pura, Goron says he would still like to spend the evening with you, but you are under no obligation to do so," stated Dexin.

"Tell him I had a great evening and I don't want it to end now. I'll take a shower and meet him my bedroom. Do you think I could get a robe."

"There should be one in the bathroom hanging on the wall. Goron states that he will see you back here in fifteen minutes. The computer will announce him and just say _sah_ to have the door opened for him."

" _Sah_ , okay. I'm learning Euclidian."

Pura took her shower, put on her robe and sat on the bed waiting for Goron to show up.

" _Mat blani_ Goron," the computer announced.

" _Sah_ ," replied Pura.

Goron entered and kneeled before her. Pura took a deep breath and pulled him into the bed next to her. Pura found Goron passionate and patient. _I don't know what I was afraid of. This is just wonderful._ Pura thought.

The next morning Goron was still holding Pura. _I hope he enjoyed the evening as much as I did._ Pura thought.

Goron stirred and looked down at Pura in his arms. "Please stay," is all he said.

"Sah," Pura said smiling up at him. Goron smiled and kissed her on the forehead sighing heavily. Pura climbed on top of Goron and decided to greet the morning with him.
Chapter 26

Chaell Learns to Chill

With the planet's military dismantled, most of its population held captive aboard the _Andrea_ and the ball over, Captain Shisal decided to take some leave to relax and see what he could pick out for himself.

"XO!"

"Aye captain."

"I'm going to take a couple of days off to pick out some personal items and then spend some time at the island across from the camp to relax."

"Aye, aye captain."

"I love warm sunny beaches. It will be interesting to experience them on this planet."

"Be sure to take some guards with you."

"I'll take a couple with me. Phoebe will be there as well. In addition we have the patrols there as if they'll be needed. You have the bridge XO!"

"I have the bridge captain."

Phoebe was waiting outside the bridge door for Captain Shisal. She was his bodyguard. A woman trained for combat during the war with the Alphas on the planet Delta. The captain did not leave the ship without her. They headed down the corridor to the transport room.

"So captain, are you ready to go ashore?"

"Indeed I am. My bag is already packed. I'll beam it down once after we arrive at the resort I have staked out for us. First I want to check out a few of their museums and zoos. I hear they have some fabulous items down there."

"Captain you can always use a remote monitor to view them. There's no reason to visit each place in person. I'm just worried about your safety."

"You can stop calling me captain for a while Phoebe. We are friends you know. As for my safety, we've got the planet on lockdown."

"It's not the planet's population I'm worried about. It is your last mission right? Someone may be looking to relieve you of your command a little early."

"Now I think you are being a worry wart. I have seen no indication that anyone wants to take over the ship. Plus we have all the upgraded security precautions in place. As soon as there is a hint of danger our UCDs would pick it up and beam us back to the ship."

"So the fact that the other three ship's captains that were involved in the destruction of the Alpha home planet are now dead doesn't bother you either?"

"I didn't know you knew about that. There are no Alphas on our ship in any position of power. Even then, none of them will be on the planet while we are there, so I feel pretty safe."

"Okay, you're the captain."

"For the next two days I'm just Chaell."

"You know on this planet Chaell means to take it easy."

"Great! Then we should both just Chaell. That's an order Phoebe!"

"Aye captain."

"Transport officer, drop us off at the Tower of London. I want to get a close look at the jewels they have on display there. Of course they won't be on display there much longer. I have a friend in mind who has a birthday coming up," said Chaell winking at Phoebe who just turned her head.

Though they were friends Phoebe tried to remain emotionally detached knowing that he was looking for a romantic relationship. She was only focused on going back to her planet and joining the resistance against the Alpha occupation.

"Aye captain," responded the transport officer. "On your mark captain."

"Mark!"

Instantly the two were transported to the Jewel House at the Tower of London. The security team in place at the Tower of London was briefed about the captain's arrival. One of the guards escorted them to the most remarkable set of jewels.

"Will you look at the size of that jewel Phoebe? I bet that crown would fit your head just fine," smiled Chaell.

"I'm not interested in jewels and crowns Chaell. You want to excite me get me some weapons."

"I'd love to Phoebe, but there is nothing on this planet that I would consider a weapon worth using to go into battle. Their nuclear weapons are the most powerful thing they have, but they leave so much pollution in their wake that you would be insane to use them unless you just wanted to make a planet unlivable. That's why we got rid of them right away. You have to wonder what these people were thinking. They ought to pay us for saving them from a fate worse than death."

"I'm thinking the ones on the ship aren't thinking that."

"Oh they'll be fine. They're used to the whole slavery thing. Enough of that talk Phoebe, tell me what you like here."

"If I pick something out will you stop harassing me about a gift for the rest of the trip?"

"Sure Phoebe. Come on, whisper in my ear."

"I like the ring with the giant red stone."

"So be it."

With that Chaell reached over, lifted the ring from the open case and handed it to her. Phoebe slipped the ring onto one of her large fingers.

"Fits like it was made for me."

"It might as well have been. It's yours now."

Chaell sent a couple of other pieces to his quarters and the rest were marked for storage with the rest of the items being taken from the planet for resale. Chaell visited the Louvre, Smithsonian, The Forbidden City and several other museums before heading to the London Zoo to get a look at the animals.

"Look at that gorgeous creature. That long neck and long legs. It moves so gracefully. I've got to have one of those."

"You might want to get two. Just in case you want to expand the herd or something."

"I get it. I know how the whole procreation thing works. Even though I haven't engaged in it for a while."

"Wow, look at those animals over there," said Phoebe pointing at some elephants and walking away.

Chaell sighed watching her walk away. "Praetor," Chaell said to the guard assisting him.

"Yes captain," he responded.

"Place two of the animals in my private storage. Make sure that they are different genders."

"Aye, aye captain."

"No, make it four. Better yet, just take them all," said Chaell frustrated with the whole ordeal. He then walked over to catch up with Phoebe.

"So you like those animals?"

"Yes, they are so powerful and gentle at the same time. They lumber around so slowly, but at any moment they could grab you up and snap you in two."

"I'll add them to my collection for you."

"Chaell if you take them you need to do it for you. Realistically, I will probably never get to see them again once we've left this planet."

"That's fine. I'll use them to remind me of you." Chaell instructed the guard to store those animals as well before turning back to Phoebe. "I've had enough of this animal collecting," stated Chaell. "Are you ready to relax Phoebe? I picked out a nice beach on an island near our camp where we can relax."

"You know how I love to swim. Where is this place?"

"It's on an island called Sunset Key across the bay from our camp. I was assured that it is deserted so we should be safe from any of the indigenous population."

"So what are you waiting for?"

"Guards, have the ship take us to the bay on Sunset Key."

"Aye, aye captain," replied one of the guards.

Chaell, Phoebe and the two guards arrived on a pristine beach at a vacant resort.

"What do you think?" Asked Chaell.

"I love it," replied Phoebe.

"So let's dive in."

Chaell stripped off his clothes, dropped them on the beach and leapt into the water. Phoebe watched him, admiring his muscular body as he dove into the water. _I can't believe that a man with such huge responsibilities can just turn it off and enjoy himself like that. All I can do is think about those damn Alphas on my home planet and how to get rid of them._
Chapter 27

The XO gets a backup plan

"Gafar, this is the XO."

"Yes XO, how may I be of service to you."

"You've been setting aside some special items for the captain and tagging them with his seal to identify them right?"

"Yes I have."

"Well I need you to send a copy of that seal to Malcolm to use for our special project."

"Will do XO."

"Did you find a large supply of processed gold that was packaged for easy movement?"

"Yes XO. There is an establishment called BullionVault located in a city called London in the country of England. It has several tons of gold."

"I didn't really need all those details. Just send the coordinates of that place to Malcolm as well."

"No problem XO. I'll take care of that right away."

***

"Malcolm, you should be receiving the captain's seal as well as coordinates for a large stockpile of gold from Gafar," stated the XO. "Place a couple of tons of the gold in an out of the way place in the basement of the resort where the ball was held. Apply the captain's seal to it and leave. Make sure it's hard to find. It has to look like it was intentionally hidden."

"No problem XO. When will he be in position for me?"

"He's going swimming later today. I'll let you know as soon as that happens and where."

"I'll be ready for him."
Chapter 28

The XO takes Over

"Attention on the ship! Attention on the ship! This is the XO speaking. Captain Shisal was caught hording several tons of gold for himself and has disappeared on the planet below. I am assuming the role of captain and the first officer will become the XO leaving his role vacant until we return. We will not waste resources going after Shisal, but if his is seen he should be captured or killed on the spot. That is all."

"Logistics, this is the captain speaking. Have all of Shisal's property placed under my ID. I will be moving to his cabin. Have it cleared out within the hour."

***

"Xiao, did you hear that?" Asked Cobalt.

"Yes, but what does it mean?"

"The XO is executing his own private mutiny."

"Why should that affect us?"

"He might decide to have you imprisoned or perform another sweep of the planet to remove more people. It's hard to say what his intentions are. Do you mind getting your friends to safety and staying with them for a while? I'll update you as soon as I have more information?"

"If you say so. If there is any trouble please join me."

"I will Xiao," Cobalt said kissing her. "Now go."

"Goodbye Coby," Xiao said disappearing.

***

"Uan, this is Cobalt, can you meet me on the beach? It's important."

"Sure," replied Uan. "I'll see you in front of our camp."

A few minutes later they were standing in the warm sun of southern Florida.

"Uan could you turn off your UCD. We need to chat about something privately."

"Cobalt, this sounds out of the ordinary, but I will comply for now. I'm ready. What do you want?"

"The XO has taken over as captain and indicated that Shisal has disappeared after getting caught trying to hide several tons of gold for himself."

"I heard the announcement, but it didn't make sense to me. The described actions were out of character for the captain. I'm sure that the XO is framing Shisal in order to take the captain's share of the profits. But what can we do about it?"

"I'm not sure, but how can you feel safe with the XO in charge? He might refuse to accept the Earthlings onboard the ship. We should try to find the captain if possible and if not get our friends off the ship."

"So how do we find the captain?"

"I believe that my friend Li Xiao placed a tracking beacon on him with hopes of find him later to convince him to return her family."

"And how would she be able to do that?"

"I gave her one of our Beam Machines."

"I can't believe that you could be that irresponsible! Were you deliberately trying to hurt the mission?"

"What can I say? I fell for her. Anyway, if I hadn't of we would have no hope of finding Shisal."

"We don't even know if he is still alive."

"True, but it's the only hope we have. I need you to meet with her to see if she can help us."

"You want me to do what?! After she publicly humiliated me with that stupid challenge. I don't want to be anywhere near her again until I am thrashing her in the arena!"

"If you want to help get Shisal back as captain of the _Andrea_ you need to do this. I have to get back to the ship for a project. You know the XO is vengeful enough to throw our friends in the holding cells just because we were associates of Shisal."

"Now you are just being manipulative."

"Is that a yes or no?"

"It's a reluctant yes!"

"Great! Here are her coordinates," Cobalt said sending them to his UCD. There is one tinsy, winsy little thing you need before going there."

"What now?"

"She is with the alien you tried to kill and you have to promise me you won't harm him or his Earthling friends!"

"You can't be serious! Do you know what that little creature did to me?! You might as well ask me to cut off my hand."

"You want to find the captain right?"

"I'll spare them, but I won't like it. And I'm not promising I won't kill them later."

"I guess that's the best I can hope for. I'm off. Good luck with Xiao."

"I'll grab Calvin off the ship and go right away."

"Send me an update when you can. I'll be free in a few hours."

"Certainly," replied Uan as they both vanished to the ship.

***

"Calvin, I need to go to Earth briefly and I want you with me."

"Great! Another 007 mission?"

"Not exactly, but it could be dangerous."

"Show me your UCD. I'm sending you the coordinates now. Press this command here like I'm doing. Select the coordinates. When you are ready press this command and you will be there."

"I'm ready.

"Then press this command and we should arrive together"

Chapter 29

Water

Water is the key to all life in the universe. In places where it is plentiful it is worth very little. And in places where it is scarce it is the most valuable possession a person can own. Ask anyone stranded in the desert what they would give for a glass of water, even dirty water. A thunderstorm after years of drought can be a godsend.

It's not just that water produces life, sustains life and shelters life it is great for cleaning, farming, extinguishing fires, manufacturing, waste removal, ceremonies and dozens of other things. For many planets fresh water is in short supply. Its scarcity causes wars, death and even extinction. For these planets, they would be willing to give up anything to have access to fresh water.

The Euclidians were well aware of the necessity of water for planets in their system. Since these planets were members of the Intergalactic Alliance of Planets, the Euclidian were not permitted to invade them without provocation. But they were able to sell or barter with them for the precious cargo.

***

A group of people started to congregate on the 520 floating bridge in Bellevue. They watched the enormous vehicle draining Lake Washington of its water, of its vitality. The vehicle would periodically shoot a spray of unneeded water onto the shore covering the shoreline houses in polluted water, undesirable vegetation and dead sea life.

Angry onlookers on the Medina shore watched as the aliens drain their planet of water. They felt helpless and desperate. How long did they have to live? A small boat took off from shore with three men in it. They were heavily armed and determined to take out the giant vehicle. They approached the vehicle, which was hovering mere inches off the water. When they were just a few meters away they started firing their weapons at the vehicle, a shot gun, automatic rifle and even a grenade launcher. None of them made a dent in the vehicle.

The unmanned vehicle ignored the attackers and continued draining the lake of its resources. The attackers were undeterred and continued firing upon the vessel until their ammunition was depleted.

"That's a horrible mess isn't it," a man stated to a woman standing on a dock overlooking Lake Washington.

"You're telling me," the lady responded. "I just opened a new barbershop and thought I was finally going to realize the American dream. Now the only hair I can cut is my own and only using scissors. You know Rudy's on Bellevue Way?"

"I really never spent much time on my hair. But if you think you have it bad, I used to be the richest man in the world and was close to extinguishing polio. Now I guess it was all a waste."

"Wow, I guess my barbershop wasn't such a big loss."

"Losing a dream is always a big loss. By the way, I'm Bill."

"Glad to meet you Bill. I'm Deb."

***

Morgan got bored sitting around the house and decided to take Pico down to the Potomac to see if there was any sign of life. They walked through their neighborhood enjoying the quiet and hoping to see others walking around. Unfortunately the streets were deserted.

Memories started to flood through Morgan's mind; there were always children playing in the yard in front of the blue house, the old lady sitting at the upstairs window at the house across the street, the sprinkler running in the yard at the house on the corner and the little beagle barking at everybody behind the chain-link fence.

"Pico, this isn't the neighborhood I remember. It's different without the people. Let's walk to the water."

Morgan and Pico continued until they reached the banks of the Potomac. There they could see a large alien ship hovering over it pulling water from the river. There were people in small boats attacking the ship, but they were just wasting their time.

"Pico I have an idea. Let's go find a garage."

Morgan took Pico a couple of blocks away and found some cars at the lower level of a garage.

"Pico, can you use your shaman ball to take three of those cars out? I'd like to try something."

"Sure," said Pico telepathically pulling out his stone. "Only one at a time though."

"That's fine. Place them on the street near the water."

Pico pulled out his shaman ball and slowly levitated each car out one by one. He put a few scratches on them trying to navigate the ramps in the garage.

"Don't worry about the scratches and dents. They are going to be a lot more banged up once we're done with them," said Morgan.

After the three cars had been moved near the beach, Morgan and Pico walked over to the waterfront to check on the Euclidian mining ship and it was still there soaking up water.

"Okay Pico, this is what I want you to do," started Morgan. "Send each car into the sky as high as you can. Then let them drop as fast as you can on that ship."

"Okay, but this is going to take a while."

"It will probably be better if you could lift all three cars at once. Otherwise, they might catch on before we can drop all three cars."

Pico pulled out his shaman stone and focused on it until he was covered in a bright blue glow. He then focused on lifting the three cars. Morgan watched as the car slowly lifted into the air. You're doing it Pico!"

Pico loved to hear the words of encouragement. Morgan watched as the cars disappeared into the clouds. He was tingling all over with anticipation about what was about to happen.

"How high up do you think they are?" Asked Morgan.

"They are a little over two miles up. I think that is as far as I can lift them," stated Pico shaking.

"Okay, let them drop on the ship and let's see what happens."

One after the other Pico let the cars drop with blinding speed. The first one hit on the top of the Euclidian mining ship near one end with a big explosion. A cheer came up from the people in the boats and on the shore thinking it was an attack from the U.S. military.

The ship stopped what it was doing and appeared to be trying to repair itself. Then the second car hit the ship in the middle and other end of the ship with more force than the first one. Giant fireballs came from the spots where the cars hit. Sparks flew into high into the air from the holes that the cars made in the ship. The ship shuddered and then fell into the water. An even louder cheer came from the onlookers.

"You did it Pico!" Said Morgan hugging Pico tightly. "You destroyed their ship. We need to figure out how to get more of them. Do you think you could teach me how to do what you do with your shaman stone?"

"I can try. Look the ship is sinking."

"Yea and the people in the water are starting to throw things at it. Wow, it just disappeared. And look, there's another one, plus some sort of escort ship. I bet it's there to protect their mining ship. Now that we know they can be hurt let's build a plan around it. I don't think we will have any more success today."

"That sounds like a smart decision."

***

Morgan and Pico arrived back at his foster parent's place excited and anxious. Morgan waved at his house guests and went to the basement to have some private time with Pico.

"Pico, I feel we made great progress today. You did an amazing job taking out that alien ship. I feel we could make better progress if I could be of more assistance somehow. I feel so powerless letting you do everything. I don't want to sit on the sidelines anymore watching you make all the effort. I want to be in the game. Teach me to do what you do."

"I'm not sure I can," replied Pico. "I will teach you how I connect to my shaman stone. Since we are still connected you will be able to see what I see. The rest is up to you."

"I will make this happen Pico. The world depends on it. Please teach me what you know."

"Okay, focus on what I am doing. I relax my mind and feel the vibrations from my stone. I pull those vibrations in and direct them back out at the stone. You can see the blue glow of the stone intensify as I connect with it. Now I pull in the magnified vibration and focus on what I want to accomplish. For example, lifting that chair. I don't try to lift the chair with my mind. I see the chair rising and it does. Now you try to connect with my stone."

Morgan took the ball from Pico and tried to focus on its vibration the way Pico did. He worked on breathing in as a way to feel the vibration from Pico's stone. Morgan could feel himself connecting to the stone.

"Morgan, you are doing great. The stone is starting to glow. Now try to lift the chair."

Morgan focused his energy on the chair. The chair vibrated, but did not rise. Morgan tried harder, but eventually lost his connection with the stone.

"Morgan, keep my stone and continue to practice. I feel that overtime you will be able to perfect your connection with the stone.
Chapter 30

Phoebe

Phoebe was a species of Delta that evolved in the northern hemisphere of the planet Delta. The area had an arid climate and was full of thick jungle. Three months out of the year the place where Phoebe lived was engulfed in total darkness. The jungle was full of life and its inhabitants evolved to hunt in the lowlight conditions. They had acute sight, hearing and a heightened ability to feel the presence of a nearby creature. It's as if they could feel the electrons being thrown off an objects body in their direction.

In the darkness of the jungle a Delta male from the island of Arubia would wait in silence next to a tree looking and listening for its prey. A knife, staff or bow and arrows served as his weapons. They would kill animals large and small to take back to the village as food. The Arubians of Delta mostly cooked their food. They accompanied the meat with fruit and vegetables gathered by the women.

The island of Arubia was isolated from the other inhabited lands of the planet by vast amounts of water. The southern edge of the island consisted of a huge desert, which further isolated the jungle inhabitants from discovery by early explorers. As the Delta civilizations advanced they were eventually able to find the lost tribes of Arubia who descended from the same humanoid species thousands of years before. While the Arubians were the same species they were taller, smarter, stronger and faster than their civilized counterparts. The slower, weaker, less bright Arubians were eaten by predators or killed during tribal disputes. The Arubians also did not tolerate those who were unable or unwilling to give back to the tribe. While brutal, they felt that culling nonproductive members of their tribes was important to the long-term sustainability of the tribe.

The Arubians eventually assimilated into the larger Delta cities. They became the military soldiers, athletes and park rangers.

Phoebe grew up in the jungles of Arubia, but moved to one of its early cities of the island where her parents decided she needed an education. Phoebe and her brothers enjoyed going back to the jungle during their time off.

Phoebe would often close her eyes at night, strip naked and walk through the forest with her arms stretched out so she could get in touch with everything around her; the trees, plants, insects and animals. Every pore on her body would tingle as she reached out with her senses pushing herself to not miss anything. She would pause on occasion, lift her head and catch a drop falling from the forest canopy. She respected life, but was not afraid to snuff it out when warranted. Her pet peeve was mosquitos, taking her blood and not giving anything in return. In moments of weakness her pet peeve would drive her to take out her sword and slice through those pesky bête noir blindfolded. That way she felt she was at least giving them a fair chance.

After graduating from college, Phoebe and her brothers joined the military for the opportunity to fight. Except for small skirmishes there wasn't much fighting on her planet until the Alphas showed up.

The Deltas first met the Alphas when they received a distress call from the Euclidians, an advanced species that showed up in orbit around their planet. They setup formal relations with the Euclidians, who seemed to be a friendly species. The Euclidian were the only alien species the Deltas had come into contact with until they engaged the Alphas in battle above the home planet of Euclidia. The Euclidians were near defeat until the Deltas came to their aid.

"This is going to be the first test of our alliance," started the air wing commander. "It is my understanding that the Euclidian are under attack by a race called the Alphas. They had an alliance with them and they just launched an unprovoked attack against the Euclidian. The Euclidian don't really have a space-based military. They were using their resource extraction vessels to hold off the Alpha fleet. They only have one left and they are sending it here to open up a portal for us to fly through back to their home planet to assist them. I need everybody to be patient and on the alert as we wait for the portal to open. Once the portal opens I want all birds launched and attack anything smaller than their resource vessel."

"Lieutenant Phoebe Asten ready to deploy. Armament is activated and all systems are go."

"Hey little sis. Be patient," Phoebe's brother came across into her headset. "You'll get more action than you can stand in just a few moments."

"Have you ever seen an Alpha or their ships?" Phoebe asked.

"Yes, I was on a detachment with our two brothers and saw a few while on leave. They are pretty puny and don't seem that tough at all. They only had diplomatic vessels in the area when I was there so I don't know what their military capabilities are."

"How are our brothers doing?"

"They're fine. They're squadron was assigned to battleship 5. We may not even see any action if that portal never opens."

"Trust me, if they conquer the Euclidians the Alphas will be coming for us next."

"Why would they want to attack us?"

"Why would they want to attack the Euclidians?" Phoebe asked.

"Listen up squadrons. This is your air wing commander speaking. The portal is open and some of the Alpha ships came through with the Euclidian resource ship. Battleship 6 is going to launch its squadrons to take care of the Alpha ships. The rest of us are going to follow the Euclidian ship back to its home base. As soon as our battleship gets through to the other side we are going to be launching all squadrons. We will be joining battleships 1 and 3 to clear the area above Euclidia of enemy vessels. Battleships 4 and 5 will be going after the Alpha ground troops."

"Commander, this is Lieutenant Phoebe Asten. Is our mission to disable or destroy the Alpha ships? Also, should we go after their escape pods?"

"We don't know what disablement means when it comes to their ships. Our mission is to destroy as many as we can and that is what I expect you to do to the best of your ability. Ignore the escape pods. They'll be landing on the planet where squadrons from battleships 4 and 5 can address them as needed."

***

"Squadron commanders, this is the battle group commander. We are exiting the portal into Euclidian space. You have your battle plans. It is important that you stay focused and take out the Alpha vessels with impunity. Euclidian freedom is at stake, and quite possibly ours if we fail here. Don't fail! That is all."

"Okay squadron 176, this is your commander speaking. Remember what you learned in training. Stick close to your wingman and don't leave our designated area of engagement. We are fourth in line to deploy. Follow my lead and stay focused. Deployment has started. Start your engines. Prepare to engage the enemy. Here we go! Fight with honor pilots!"

One by one the pilots rolled their fighters into the chutes and launched into space. Phoebe being one of the junior pilots took her vessel to the starboard side and just to the rear of her lead pilot.

"Phoebe, let's clear the three Alpha fighters to our starboard side. I'll lock onto the first one and you grab the second one. We'll regroup on the third," said Joss.

"Got it Joss. I have a lock on the second vessel and firing."

"The first one is down and I'm going after the third."

"Joss, I've taken out my target and now there are two Alphas approaching from above. I'll break away and engage them. You can reconnect once you have finished off the one you are after."

_You Alphas have lots of vessels, but they don't maneuver very well_ , thought Phoebe. _Oh no!_

"Joss, I was hit from my blind side. I took out one of the new vessels, but I was hit before I could get the second one and the third has a lock on me."

"Not anymore," stated Joss. "I took it out, now you get that last one."

"One second. Wait for it. And kaplooey."

"Great shot. It appears that their shields are no match for our weapon systems, at least in initial attacks. Let's rejoin our squadron and continue the cleanup of our sector."

"I'm with you leader," replied Phoebe.

"Within two hours of entering Euclidian space the Alpha ships were all taken out. The ground troops were still fighting back. The Alphas had reinforced bunkers that were impenetrable to the Alpha and Euclidian forces. After several attacks they were not able to stop them from sending their plasma blasts off into the Euclidian cities.

"General, our artillery and the Delta ships are having very little impact on the Alpha bunkers. Unless we can take them out, millions of people will continue to be killed," reported a field commander.

"Commander," replied the general, "focus on getting our people to shelters. Use our weapons to try and neutralize the Alpha blasts before they strike. Tell the Deltas to do the same. Communications, connect me with the _Waldwick_ , our remaining resource ship."

"On screen general."

"Commander, this is General Lapsik. I'm leading the military effort against the Alphas. Great job on holding off the Alphas and getting the Delta fighters here. But now if we don't do something quick we are going to be forced to surrender or watch most of our citizens get obliterated. I want you to launch all of your mining vessels and start creating trenches deep below the enemy bunkers. There are ten enemy bunkers deployed. I'll send you the coordinates now."

"Coordinates received general. I'm sending four vessels to each site. Plus I have an idea that our Delta friends can help us with."

"Roger that commander. Keep me posted."

"Ambassador Parlo, I need you to speak to your squadron commanders. I need your vessels to fire on these ten coordinates when I give the command."

"I would be happy to," replied the Delta ambassador, "but we haven't had too much success so far penetrating their bunkers."

"I understand, but I want them to try something different. On my command I want them to attack the bases using heat-generating weapons if possible."

"Our vessels can be configured in that manner as needed. Let me contact our fleet admiral and get the message to him."

"Much respect ambassador."

"Fleet admiral, this is Ambassador Parlo. Could you have your fleet breakoff their attack on the Alpha bunkers and have their weapons systems configured to fire heat blasts?"

"Certainly ambassador, but I don't see how that will have an effect."

"The Euclidians are executing a plan that will need those heat-generating weapons. I will send you the coordinates to the ten bases that they want attacked and let you know when to commence the attack."

"Go ahead and send the coordinates ambassador. I'll contact the fleet and let them know what they need to do. Battle groups 4 and 5, break off your land-based attacks. Have your squadrons equip their vessels for heat blasts. Battle group 4 here are your coordinates for the five Alpha bases you will be attacking. Battle Group 5 here are your attack coordinates. I will alert you when I need the attack to begin."

Five minutes later Battle Group 4 responded. "Fleet admiral, this is Battle Group 4. Our squadrons are configured and standing by for your orders."

"Battle Group 5 is ready as well admiral."

"Status received. Standby for the attack order," replied the admiral.

"General Lapsik, this is the resource vessel _Waldwick_. Our mining vessels have been deployed and digging below the bunkers seems to be working. The Alpha bunkers have sunk at least fifty meters into the ground and are sinking deeper."

A loud cheer went up in the command center.

"No time for cheers yet everyone," stated the general. "They are still able to fire on our cities from where they are. We need to execute part two of our plan. Have all your mining ships expel metallic minerals into the holes above those enemy bunkers. I want those holes full to the top right away. Let's get this job done!"

Three minutes later all mining vessels reported in complete with their tasks.

"Ambassador, have your ships attack now," requested the general.

"Fleet admiral, this is Ambassador Parlo. Attack now."

"Battle Groups 4 and 5 attack now," ordered the admiral.

The squadron vessels attacked the ten enemy bunkers that were now covered in deep piles of metallic minerals and unable to fire their weapons. Under the heat from the blasts the piles became molten metal that engulfed the Alpha bunkers cooking their inhabitants. The bunkers finally fell silent.

"Joss, you see that," stated Phoebe. "By working together we were able to defeat those bastards"

"You can say that again Phoebe. Time to head back"

"I'm with you Joss."

"General Lapsik, it's over," stated the ambassador. "The Alphas have been cooked inside their bunkers by the molten metal. Once it cools it will be large blocks of metal. What should we do with them?"

"I'm sure the Alphas will want their men returned for proper burial, so have them beamed to the Alpha home planet a couple of kilometers above their capital city. Let's make an event of it. Four days from now at high noon. And I want this televised!"

Phoebe returned home with her squadron a decorated war hero. Soon after they returned the military was expanded and the practice maneuvers increased in preparation for a war with the Alphas that might come and come it did."

***

"Joss, tell me what you heard."

"It's not good Phoebe. A swarm of Alpha fighters came out of nowhere and destroyed Battleships 1, 3 and 4 before they could fire a shot. They were sitting ducks in base. The Alphas have obviously upgraded their weapons systems."

"The crew was able to escape right?"

"No Phoebe, none of them made it off the ships."

"My brothers? Nothing from my brothers?" Phoebe demanded tearing up.

"Nothing Phoebe. Some of the crew was off the ship on leave, but your brothers were not among them. Get your head together Phoebe. We have the battle of our lives ahead of us. It seems their ships are faster and able to penetrate our shields. We're just lucky we were out on maneuvers or our battleship may have been destroyed. Get to your fighter, we need to take off soon."

"You don't have to tell me twice. I'm ready to kill those bastards."

The two took off with their squadron to no avail. One by one the battleships and squadrons were taken out by the Alpha's more advanced firepower. Phoebe was able to take out three Alpha ships before having her ship disabled. She beamed to safety before her ship was totally destroyed. There were too many Alpha ships and troops for the Alphas to repel them. By the time the Euclidian ships showed up it was too late to save the Deltas from annihilation.

The Deltas surrendered and the Euclidian agreed to a truce with the Alphas to end their attack on the Deltas. In less than two days the Alphas were able to beat the Deltas into submission.

"What do you mean we surrendered?!" Screamed Phoebe at her squadron commander. "We haven't even put up much of a fight yet."

"Phoebe, there is no one left to put a fight. All of our battleships have been destroyed, our space stations are all gone and they killed the entire population of our moon. The few fighters we have left across this sector are not enough to successfully engage the hundreds of fighters they have in the air above us. Remember the ten bunkers they had on Euclidia that killed millions of the Euclidians? There are twenty-five on our planet waiting to put us out of existence."

"What about the Euclidians?"

"We would all be dead before they got here. They signed a truce with the Alphas agreeing not to attack them if they agreed to end their violence against us."

"You know my last brother and Joss were killed when we went to fight them."

"Phoebe, you should be checking on the remainder of your family and forget about trying to attack the Alphas."

"I can't get through to anyone. The communications are down."

"You'll have to wait until they come back online. For now you are restricted to your barracks. Any military personnel caught off base will be killed on sight."

"So we save the Euclidians from extinction and they turn their back on us. And all we can do is cower at those weak bastards."

"Phoebe, go to your quarters and cool off. There is nothing more you can do here."

"You mean there is nothing more you will let me do."

"Dismissed Lieutenant Asten."

"As you wish commander," replied Phoebe saluting the commander and then heading to her quarters. _I will make them pay for this attack. My brothers' deaths will not go unavenged_ , said Phoebe under her breath.

Phoebe would have to wait to seek her revenge against the Alphas. Soon after the surrender all Delta military personnel were imprisoned as war criminals. During Phoebe's five-year imprisonment life on Delta changed drastically. The alphas took over control of all government and law enforcement activities. Delta citizens were relegated to subservient roles. Business owners were allowed to keep their businesses, though they were heavily taxed.

The Euclidian attack on the Alphas that destroyed their home planet pushed a lot of refugees to move to Delta. Deltas were imprisoned and killed in order to make room for the immigrating Alphas. Phoebe was happy to hear about the attack. Unfortunately, it did not make life any better for the Deltas.

When Phoebe was finally released the only job she could get that suited her experience was being a bodyguard for wealthy businessmen. She attempted to join a resistance movement, but the Alpha's surveillance mechanisms made that all but impossible. So Phoebe saved her money and quietly told people to wait for the revolution to come. "So many people cannot continue to bend to the will of so few," Phoebe reminded people

One fateful day while protecting a client with a couple of other colleagues, they were ambushed by some hoodlums looking to make some quick dough. Everyone in her group was killed and she found herself looking down the barrel of a gun from the last surviving member of the attackers. Before the assailant could pull the trigger he was killed by a Euclidian resource ship captain.

The ship's captain turned out to be Chaell Shisal. Since Phoebe owed this stranger her life and was coincidentally unemployed, she decided to go with him and become his bodyguard. It would get her off her occupied planet and hopefully make her some money that she could use towards the revolution she often thought of.

"Phoebe!" Chaell shouted. "Are you coming in the water or are you going to just stare into space?"

"Coming Chaell," Phoebe shouted back at him. She pushed her thoughts of the revolution into the back of her mind, stripped off her clothes and jumped into the water.
Chapter 31

Yoyo foils the Attack

"That command is used to initiate a self-destruct mechanism," Commander Filo replied to Yoyo looking frightened."

"Go ahead and set it to destroy the ship in six minutes," Yoyo commanded.

"That will kill us along with the Alpha ship," replied Commander Filo entering the command."

"I think it is a small price to pay to save the lives of millions of people."

Command accepted. The ship will self-destruct in six minutes.

"Is there anything you want to talk about your last six minutes of life commander?" Asked Yoyo.

"I want you to stop this foolishness and let me finish my mission," replied Commander Filo his face full of fear.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Kenyon. We can be on a first name basis now that we are dying together right?"

"I don't want to die. At least not now. Not like this."

"Trust me. This isn't the way I had planned to go either. I was just starting to enjoy my job on the _Adele_. I thought this whole ambassador position was real. You just used me and my people to get back at the Euclidians."

The ship will self-destruct in five minutes.

"Please stop this madness. There is no reason to destroy the ship. You can just take us back to the ship and have me arrested."

"No one would believe me. As a high ranking officer you could have me killed for treason or some other made up offense and hatch your plan with some other unsuspecting Magi. Maybe you have a backup plan in place already in case you were unable to get this shuttle."

"Then why bother blowing us up? Just have me land us on Euclidia or take you back to Tammaria."

"Because at least I will have two ships and a mastermind out of the way and unusable by the Alphas."

"Yoyo listen to reason.."

The ship will self-destruct in four minutes.

"..I could make you very rich. I could make your people wealthy beyond your wildest dreams."

"That's the whole point Kenyon. We don't dream of being rich or taking over the world or ever hurting anyone for personal gain."

"But won't your family miss you? What about the new team you're in charge of as ambassador?"

"Except for Jesmino, I don't know them very well. Though she is a bit odd I will miss her. I wish I could say goodbye to her, but there are more important things to focus on right now."

"Why do you want to say goodbye to me?" Asked Jesmino appearing on the ship out of nowhere.

The ship will self-destruct in three minutes.

"Why are you destroying the ship? Won't that kill you?" Jesmino asked.

"Who are you and where did you come from?!" Asked Commander Filo.

"I'm Jesmino. Don't you remember me?"

"You certainly sound like her, but you look like a Euclidian," stated Yoyo.

"Oh, I forgot," replied Jesmino changing back to her Magi form.

"Oh my goodness," exclaimed Yoyo. "How did you do that and how did you get here."

"How I changed is hard to explain, but I told you I would keep in touch with you, so I monitored you via a few atoms that I placed in your brain. I heard my name mentioned so I came to see what you needed," replied Jesmino.

"But how did you get here?"

"At the subatomic level one can be everywhere at once and I decided to be here."

"What is she talking about?" Asked Commander Filo.

"I still don't know. She was babbling about that stuff the last time I saw her."

"Jesmino, can you disable the self-destruct mechanism?" Asked Commander Filo.

"I guess so, but I don't like to interfere."

"Jesmino, he's trying to use this ship to harm Euclidia, possibly killing millions of inhabitants, including Tammarians like my new friend Belo."

The ship will self-destruct in two minutes.

"That doesn't sound very nice."

"Commander Filo, this is Alpha ship _Lansing_ , come in."

"Don't answer Kenyon!" Ordered Yoyo.

"Yoyo don't do this," Commander Filo begged, his face contorting. "Do you want to kill your friend and colleague Jesmino as well? I thought you liked her."

"Oh don't worry about me. I will be a long ways away from here before the blast occurs."

"Jesmino, can you take me with you?"

"Sort of, but it's not an easy process."

"Commander Filo, this is Alpha ship _Lansing_ , we are going to extend our cloaking mechanism to hide your ship. Please respond."

"What do you mean it's not easy? Will it take more than two minutes?"

"No, it would be almost instantaneous. However, it will require me to compress the empty space between your atoms making your body smaller that the width of an eyelash. Do you know how much empty space there is in an object? It's really amazing considering how dense an object feels when you touch it. Even metal objects can be shrunk down to a fraction of their size."

The ship will self-destruct in one minute.

"Jesmino, there really isn't much time left. Do you think you could hurry this up?"

"Sure, but I should tell you about the side effects."

"Will I survive?!" Yoyo stated impatiently.

"Yes, of course. I wouldn't attempt it otherwise."

"What do you meant by _attempt_?"

"Well I've never really done it before. However, theoretically it should work."

"So do it now!"

"Okay, where do you want to go?"

The ship will self-destruct in ten seconds.

"Anywhere on my ship, now!"

"What about me?" Commander Filo.

"Leave him! Go! Now!"

"Okay!"
Chapter 32

Instant Molecular Redistribution

One of the important advances that came out of Euclidian research was the instant molecule redistribution (IMR) device. It impacted every aspect of daily life from sports, to entertainment, construction and of course military. Before its creation people were forced to have multiple sizes of an object. Now they could have one version of it and resize it as needed.

The IMR device had the ability to rearrange the molecules in an object in a way that changed its size. For example, Phoebe had one in her staff that permitted her to lengthen it for fighting or shrink it down to size to make it easier to carry around. The mass of the staff did not change, only it size.

At first the heat generated from the process of molecular redistribution kept it from being practical. Researchers later found that bombarding molecules with uni-polarized strings caused the bond between molecules to dissipate without an appreciable increase in heat.

Once the process was perfected tiny IMR devices were applied to a wealth of objects where dynamic expansion and retraction was desired. Dining room tables could be expanded to accommodate various numbers of guests. Likewise plates could be resized to hold large or small amounts of foods. The ability to modify the size of devices had a powerful impact on the utility of devices. A device could be used as a personal handheld device or stretched out and placed on a wall for viewing by many people.

The IMR device made doors, drawbridges and lifts easier to deploy and use. A person who had trouble going up stairs could stand on an expanding platform to go to different levels in a house without taking up a bunch of space with a ramp or elevator.

The application where the IMR device exhibited the greatest benefit was in repairing the hull of space vehicles. Space vehicles were often damaged by space debris. While the ship's shields helped to protect it from space debris, they were not perfect. A strike by a large object or an attack by an enemy vessel could leave a gaping hole in the ship that the ship's shields were unable to seal.

The IMR device could seal hull breaches almost instantaneously by expanding the molecules in the metal to fill the breach. For that reason hulls were double the needed thickness in order to have the extra material when needed. The hulls also consisted of several redundant IMR devices in case some were damaged during the hull breach.

Like many of the Euclidian inventions, the IMR device was protected with a tamper proof construction and intelligent programming to prevent them from being used inappropriately. For example, Phoebe's staff can only be expanded by her. If it is already expanded and another person tries to use it, then it will collapse becoming unusable.

This device is an example of how the Euclidian's investment in research made them a formidable fighting force. This is also what drove them to discover new technology and research being performed by planets that they invaded. The Alphas focused on conquering and pillaging, with very little thought in the acquisition of technology. They would often destroy a planet in order to chalk up another military victory before even investigating what technology might be available.
Chapter 33

Yoyo heads to Earth

"Jessmmmino, whyyyyy am I sooo coldddd? Where are we?"

"We are back on your ship as I promised you. I took you to your job, which is where I saw you most of the time. You are cold because of the decompression caused when your atoms expand back to your normal size. You are probably blind as well, but that will pass."

"Whattt isss the clapppping?"

"You are standing naked on your stage shivering. The people here probably think you are performing."

"Why am I naked?"

"When I compressed your atoms each item was separated into distinct clumps. When you were reconstituted everything was expanded separately. You will be happy to know that your UCD survived the process as well."

"Can you put my clothes back on me?"

"Not really, I don't have a way of doing that and you are shivering too much for me to do it manually. Until you warm up I will take off my robe and do an exotic dance around you so people with think this is a real performance."

Jesmino removed her robe exposing a glittering costume like the one she had seen Yoyo wear. She starts undulating around Yoyo to the jeers of the bar's clients.

"Jesmino what's happening? There is more clapping and I can see blurs now."

"People are applauding our performance. I think I am doing quite well considering I have never done this before."

"I can see you now. Why aren't you naked and shivering?"

"Because I am not an organic being. Everything you see before you I generated from free atoms. I was created a millennium ago to serve a race of advanced beings. I became self-aware and learned to use the power of sub-atomic physics to travel the universe and experience different places. I traveled so much I lost my way back and decided to live amongst your people for a while."

"Wow, your story just keeps getting more and more fascinating. Unfortunately I don't have time to hear it, because we have a few problems to solve. First, what happened to the shuttle?"

"It was destroyed along with the commander and his ship."

"That thing you did to me. Can you do that to their cloaked ships that are waiting to attack Euclidia?"

"I guess, though it will take me a moment to find them all. Do you want me to bring them all here?"

"No just compress them where they are."

"Okay, I can do that."

"How long will it take you?"

"I'm finished. They are all tiny objects now."

"So will they ever return to normal size?"

"No, they will more than likely be caught in the gravitational field of a nearby planet and be burned up in its atmosphere without anyone ever knowing what happened to them."

"That means that no one will know whatever happened to Commander Filo either for that matter. I think I can move well enough to get my clothes on. You can stop that goofy dance now."

"I don't think the audience thought it was so goofy. We should probably take a bow don't you think?"

"Sure!"

The two grabbed hands and bowed while the clients in the bar erupted in applause and laughter. Yoyo put her clothes on and exited the bar with Jesmino close behind.

"Jesmino I need you to find out where the XO of the _Andrea_ is."

"I don't know how to do that."

"Can't you find him the way you found me?"

"No, I never connected with him in the same way."

"Can't you just search for his atomic pattern or something?"

"Not really. There are infinite places to look and therefore it would take infinite time to find him."

"Yoyo, I need you to step away from your friend," said a security guard pointing a weapon at Jesmino.

"She works for me," replied Yoyo.

"It doesn't matter. She shouldn't be on the ship without permission. We can't even figure out how she got here."

"Sorry about that Yoyo. I'll see you back on the planet," stated Jesmino disappearing.

"I apologize security. I don't know how she does that. I'll make sure she doesn't do that again."

"Fine Yoyo, but we will have to write this up. We can't have people just popping on and off our ship at will. That shouldn't even be possible. Why don't you come with us and answer some questions. We should be able to let you go after that."

"Okay let's go," Said Yoyo following the officers out of the bar.

***

Yoyo went to the security office and started the interrogation process. Once she was alone with one officer she persuaded him to forget about all the charges. Yoyo decided that she needed to find out where the XO of the _Andrea_ was and save the captain. She went to the transport room and used her powers of persuasion to find out what she needed.

"Hello lieutenant. You run the transport room here right?" Asked Yoyo of one of the officers in one of the secondary transport rooms.

"I'm one of the people that run this particular transport room, but you shouldn't be here," replied the officer.

"How could you deny my sparkling blue eyes a little light conversation?"

"I guess a little conversation would be alright."

"Can you tell me where the XO or the captain of the _Andrea_ is?"

"That's not really something I track. It's a completely different ship."

"Please try to find out if you don't mind."

"Well, the _Andrea_ is away on a mission right now in a newly charted planetary system XAB1123. Getting more specifics will take some time."

"Look at me!" Commanded Yoyo. "Your life depends on you getting the answer. Do what you must to get the answer, but get it right away. Do you understand?!"

"Yes, Yoyo. I will get the answer you need."

Yoyo paced back and forth until he finally responded to her.

"Yoyo I found them. The XO is aboard their ship above the second planet in their solar system. The captain's whereabouts seem to be unknown. They indicate that he might be dead. I have his last known coordinates if that helps."

"Yes, send me there right away."

"I don't have the authority.."

"Do it!" Commanded Yoyo cutting him off.

"Right away Yoyo."

Arghhh, what the hell is this place?" Yoyo screamed covering her face with her hands and squatting to protect her body from the rays of the Florida sun. She grabbed her UCD and screamed at the transport operator to beam her directly to her cabin.

Yoyo arrived in her cabin grabbed her robe and goggles and ordered the transport officer to send her back. She got there in time to see a battle unfolding. She saw several species fighting each other and no one was wearing a uniform. There was only one Euclidian present and she assumed that must be the captain. However, not being a trained fighter she could do nothing except watch the fight continue and hope for the best.
Chapter 34

The U.S. Military Prepares to Fight

In a bunker deep below the white house the president was conferring with members of the military and intelligence community that were still on duty.

"So where do we stand gentlemen? I know your reports will be limited due to the lack of personnel and loss of standard communications, but tell me what you can. Let's start with the navy.

"We had some limited communications with ships using onboard radios that were stored in internal lockers. When the invasion started the aliens went after our big targets, carriers, destroyers, cruisers and submarines. They just disappeared from the water without a trace. Reports from foreign navies indicated the same thing."

"After the ships were taken, it appeared that the aliens setup several lines of airships stretched across the globe along the longitudinal axis of the Earth. They proceeded westerly and beamed up almost all human life to God knows where. Those below ground were protected for the most part. We can only assume that they chose not to scan that deep. They appeared to leave our smaller ships intact, just removed the personnel, even those below water level. Anyone in the water, away from the ships was not taken. We have several reports from divers who saw the craft go by. There seemed to be hundreds of them in staggered formation moving pretty fast. No lights or beams of any kind seemed to be emanating from the crafts. However, it was clear that they were responsible for the disappearance of the shipboard personnel.

Approximately ninety-nine percent of our land-based personnel have been taken. We do have two fully equipped submarines left that are hidden in underwater caves. We had four and sent two of them after one of the alien water vessels that appeared to be harvesting our water in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Bermuda. Our missiles and torpedoes were quickly neutralized and the submarines were taken. Our current force now consists of the two hidden submarines and a couple hundred sailors and marines spread out across the globe."

***

"Thank you Admiral Bruckheimer. General Gannon, give us a report on the Air Force."

"Mr. President, unfortunately I don't have much to report. All of our radar, missile and satellite systems are basically dead. Our aircraft are all gone. We are communicating with airmen via battery-powered radios. We detected an anomaly beyond the moon just before our systems went out. It must have been the alien ship. Unfortunately they moved too quickly for us to respond. Soon afterwards all of our nuclear missiles were taken, followed by airplanes and support equipment. We have about five hundred airmen left, most of them hiding out in bunkers. We lost seven stealth fighters, which were previously hidden in a bunker, during an attack on one of the alien ships over DC. We never even got a shot off. We have three more in bunkers, but they are stuck there for now. We are working to get the elevators running again. That's all I have to report Mr. President."

"General Passman, could you give us a report on the army?"

"Mr. President, I have very little to report myself. All of our armored vehicles have been taken. I'm only in contact with about eighty-five soldiers. We have tons of hand weapons, but very few soldiers to use them and they wouldn't be very effective against the aliens anyway."

"Is anyone aware of any alien forces on the ground?"

"I have one bit of news Mr. President."

"Yes, Director Mathers."

The CIA has a field agent in Miami that has been working with some militia out of south Florida. It appears that the aliens have setup a base in Key West. It doesn't seem to be a military base though. The aliens there appear to be on vacation. The perimeter is being patrolled though."

It appears that they have finished with the abduction of our people and are now focusing on taking our resources. I believe we have an extremely small chance of getting through their defenses. Our only viable option is to try to end their mining."

"So what do we know about their mining vehicles?" Asked the president.

"The ships are massive, move pretty slowly and don't seem to have offensive or defensive capabilities. For the most part they ignore any attacks, which have been pretty much futile. Their airships eventually come around and chase off any attackers. The reconnaissance I have received indicates that there are two ships hovering above them in a circular fashion read to take out any threats."

"Okay gentlemen. I need more information if we are going to attempt a successful attack against these aliens. Find out what you can about their camp in Key West. Check with everyone who has attempted to take out their mining vessels and see what successes they have been having. I want updates from any foreign military you can contact. If underground vehicles have been left intact let's find some and start scouring the country for intel. You have your orders, now go execute them. We need answers and we need them now! Let's move gentlemen."

"Yes, Mr. President," they all responded.
Chapter 35

The Hunting of Chaell

Malcolm watched as Phoebe and Chaell glided into the warm waters of the gulf. The salty water was distasteful to Chaell as it stung his eyes. Still he enjoyed the quiet of the water. He floated on the top and enjoyed the heat of the sun. Phoebe enjoyed the salty taste of the water as it reminded her of the waters around Arubia where she grew up. While Chaell remained on the surface, Phoebe dived to the seafloor to investigate the sea life and rock formations.

In a playful mood Phoebe swam at Chaell and dragged him under. They spent time wrestling and chasing each other under water. Chaell forgot about the stinging salt and Phoebe forgot about the troubles on her home planet. She led him to the sea floor where Chaell pinned her to a rock outcropping. He nibbled on her neck and when she didn't resist he grabbed her hips and pulled her close. She let out a burst of bubbles from her open mouth and pushed him away swimming for the surface.

There were two guards watching over them and their belongings. Malcolm felt he could easily take them out. He brought with him a metal bag to block the signals from a UCD device and a jammer to prevent any signals from being sent from a UCD that were not in his bag. Malcolm cloaked himself, turned on his jammer, placed his own UCD in his bag and then collected Phoebe and Chaell's UCDs placing them in the bag. He grabbed their weapons and then ran at his prey. He held a short sword, which he took from a local museum, low behind him. As he approached the first guard he swung his sword forward decapitating the guard. Pausing and jumping toward the second guard who was startled by his colleague's demise, Malcolm sliced diagonally through his body leaving him in a bloody bifurcated heap. He placed their UCDs in his bag and dragged the carcasses behind the nearby cabana and into a dumpster.

Malcolm returned to the beach and sat next to a tree waiting for Phoebe and Chaell to exit the water.

***

"Phoebe, where are the guards?" Asked Chaell.

"They're dead like you two are going to be real soon," said Malcolm coming into view.

Phoebe grabbed her clothes looking for her UCD and weapon.

"They're gone phoebe. You won't be calling for reinforcements or blasting me. I did leave your staff so you won't be completely defenseless," stated Malcolm.

"Why didn't you just shoot us?"

"I'm not a coward. I'm going to kill you the old fashioned way. I'm going to give you a good beat down and end it by chopping off your head," stated Malcolm fading away.

"Chaell, let's take cover in the trees. Duck!" Screamed Phoebe blocking a blow from Malcolm's sword. She squeezed the center of her staff to extend it to full size.

Malcolm carried a medieval battle sword so that the metal fragments from this sword could not be traced back to him or cause suspicion that the attack came from a member of the _Andrea_. Malcolm was cloaked, but Phoebe was still able to sense him. She fought him off as Chaell took refuge in the trees.

As Phoebe and Malcolm battled each other they locked weapons. Malcolm leaned into Phoebe uncloaking. "You are going to pay for that humiliation of me in front of my people. I'm going to defeat you, decapitate you and then kill that captain of yours."

"Big plans for such a little man," Phoebe said looking down sideways at Malcolm. "Now that you've lived a miserable life, I'm going to see to it that you die a horrible death."

They pushed away from each other and continued fighting each other. Malcolm leaped into the air and came down hard on Phoebe swinging his sword with great ferocity. Phoebe fended off the attack and countered with an attack of her own. Malcolm blocked her attacks and kicked her to the ground. As he went to take advantage of her fall a small person appeared in front of him wearing a tight pink outfit.

"What is this," screamed Malcolm angrily, annoyed that the person was blocking him from his attack on Phoebe. He swung his sword at the figure, but the person disappeared before he could land a blow.

"Die Malcolm!" Shouted Phoebe as she landed a blow to the side of his head knocking him to the ground.

Malcolm was stunned, but still conscious. That wasn't good enough for Phoebe though. She was going to take advantage of his condition to finish him off. She lunged at him with the idea of crushing his head. Though he was stunned, Malcolm was lucid enough to block her blow with his sword. Phoebe leaned down on him exerting increased pressure on his sword.

"Malcolm, I should've killed you the first time that we fought. I'm going to fix that mistake right now."

Phoebe leapt back from Malcolm and swung her staff at Malcolm with increased Ferocity. Malcolm blocked her blows and tried to get to his feet to launch an attack, but Phoebe gave him no breathing room. Malcolm found an opening and swung his sword at her thigh, but Phoebe was too quick for him and knocked his sword from his hand. Phoebe lifted her staff above her head and hesitated. Malcolm didn't understand what happened, but took the opportunity to grab his sword and stab her in the abdomen. Phoebe looked at him in disbelief as she was impaled on Malcolm's sword. Malcolm kicked Phoebe off his sword and to the ground.

"Now I take my prize by separating your head from your body," said Malcolm raising his sword over his head.

***

"Look!" Screamed Morgan. "It's the assassin!"

Li Xiao jumped in front of Morgan and Pico blocking them from Uan with her sword. "I thought we had a deal Uan."

"Relax, I am not here for your friends. I am here to see you."

"You know him Xiao?" Asked Morgan in an accusatory tone.

"Yes, we met at the ship's ball and I challenged him to a battle in the arena to save you two."

"A battle you will lose and then I will be back to finish what I started to kill these annoying pests."

"And we'll be waiting to put you in your place like we always do," replied Morgan with Pico giving a silent thumbs up.

Denise stepped in front of Uan cutting him off. "Are you the one that killed my brother?" Asked Denise angry and afraid at the same time.

"I certainly may be. I have killed a few people since I have been here," replied Uan without emotion.

"He was the unarmed patient in the hospital that was no threat to you that you seemed to feel comfortable killing for no good reason."

"Oh him. It was unintentional. He just got in the way."

"Got in the way?" Stated Denise raising her voice and leaning into Uan. "Well I want an apology."

"Now you are getting in my way. I will not give you an apology, but I will give you a spear to the chest if you do not move. I will not apologize for that either."

"Denise we can't win this," said Li Xiao pulling Denise away from Uan. "Getting killed is not going to bring your brother back or help us out of this situation."

"Okay, but this isn't over. Somehow I will find a way to get back at you."

"We shall see. For now I have important business to discuss with Xiao. Can we go the side and talk? Asked Uan motioning for Xiao to step to the side of the room.

Xiao left Denise's side and walked towards the kitchen with Uan and Calvin.

"Who was that strange looking guy?" Asked Morgan's mother.

"He's the assassin that came from the alien ship to kill Pico," replied Morgan.

"What on Earth for?"

"They were afraid that Pico would warn Earth or use his powers to stop the invasion."

"So why didn't he warn Earth or stop the invasion?"

"He didn't know if they were really coming and had no evidence to prove their existence. Pico's powers are very rudimentary. While he may be able to lift people off the ground and heal people, he can't move or destroy a spaceship."

"He is great at healing people," Denise chimed in. "Which is probably not very helpful in stopping an alien invasion."

***

"Xiao, Cobalt tells me you might know where Captain Shisal is," started Uan.

"Sure, but why wouldn't you just contact him on his UCD?" Replied Xiao.

"We have been unable to. In addition, it appears he has come up missing and now the XO has taken over the ship. Cobalt believes that the captain was captured or killed by people helping the XO."

"I knew that the XO had taken over the ship, but I didn't know he was responsible for the captain's demise. I did place a waypoint on him. I guess it still works even if the person is dead."

"Let us hope that we do not find him dead. I feel the XO might not stop at killing the captain."

Xiao pulled out her transport device to see if she could find the captain. "Here he is," stated Xiao showing her device to Uan. "It looks like he is standing behind some trees watching something."

"Let me see it," said Uan grabbing the device from her hands. "We need to see what he is looking at, as he stretched the device to about 30 centimeters across.

"Oh my goodness. I totally didn't know you could do that," exclaimed Xiao.

Uan just looked at her and shrugged.

"Look," said Uan pointing to the screen. "Malcolm is fighting with Phoebe. Back here are two dead guards he obviously killed before taking on Phoebe. The XO had to of ordered this attack. Phoebe is not wearing clothes, so she must have been swimming and Malcolm attacked her when she came out of the water. He must have taken that opportunity to steal her UCD. I need to get down there and help her. Take me there and then bring the captain here."

Uan shrunk her transport device down to normal size and handed it to Xiao.

"Calvin, let them know what we are planning. Help out where you can. The XO could have more people out to kill the captain," said Uan as Xiao grabbed his hand and they disappeared.

"Listen up," said Calvin to the group in Morgan's house. "The captain of the alien ship above this planet and his bodyguard are being attacked by some people sent by the XO of the ship. Uan and Xiao have left to save them. She should be back soon with the captain."

"You mean the alien captain of the ship that is attacking Earth is coming here?" Morgan asked excitedly.

"Yes, but he's not that bad a guy. I mean, he is big and scary looking, but he normally doesn't kill people without provocation."

"Oh that makes me feel real comfortable," stated Norma. "So what kinds of things provoke this guy?"

"Well, he's provoked by things like not following orders, failing at training or not finishing your work."

"You mean almost anything then," stated Denise with a look of concern on her face. "Is this really the kind of person we want in this house?"

"I guess I understand your trepidation. At this point, I'm not sure how we would be able to throw him out."

"Great, we've got an alien Attila the Hun coming to stay with us and we have no way to protect ourselves against him. I wonder who is going to get the master bedroom once he arrives?" Said Norma sarcastically.

***

Xiao arrived at the beach with Uan where Phoebe was in the midst of battle with Malcolm. Xiao gasped as she watched Phoebe lean backwards to dodge the blade of Malcolm's sword as it came in close proximity to her face.

"Captain, I'm here with Xiao who just joined our crew," stated Uan. "She is going to use her Beam Machine to take you to safety."

"Uan, I don't want to leave Phoebe while she is in the midst of battle," replied Chaell.

"Captain, it's more important that we keep you safe. I'll stay and help Phoebe. As soon as we take care of Malcolm we will work with you on how we can put you back in charge of the _Andrea_. Go with Xiao!"

"Look, she's been stabbed. Can you just tell me what the hell is going on here?!"

"Xiao will explain once she takes you to safety. I need to go," said Uan leaping into battle while Xiao grabbed Chaell arms and vanished with him.

***

"Is that what it's come to brother?" Said Uan walking up on Malcolm as he is about to decapitate Phoebe. "Where is the honor in this?"

"Hello brother," replied Malcolm. "I'm trying to get my honor back after she took it during our last fight."

"What does that have to do with killing the captain?"

"He is no longer the captain, but a traitor. I'm just here to pass justice on him. Don't you think that's the honorable thing to do?"

"You know what I think Malcolm. There is one too many Ossies on this planet," replied Uan swinging his sword at Malcolm.

***

Moments after Xiao left, she returned with Chaell at her side.

"Oh my goodness," exclaimed Norma looking up at the imposing figure of the extraterrestrial in front of her. The scent of ginger from his skin filled her nostrils. Everyone in the room was wide-eyed, open-mouthed and panicked except for Calvin who had already met Chaell.

"Stowtan char," said Calvin greeting Chaell to help break the tension in the room.

"Stowtan bitar Calvin," responded Chaell, which did not do much to ease the tension in the room. As a matter of fact, Denise fainted.

_Wow, he remembered my name,_ thought Calvin.

" _I mean you no harm_ ," said Chaell in Euclidian, holding up a hand to try and calm the room. " _I am Chaell_ ," he said extending his hand to Norma.

"Did he just ask me to chill?" Norma asked reluctantly shaking his hand.

"He said I mean you no harm, my name is Chill," stated Xiao.

"Norma," said Norma nodding her head.

"I'm Morgan," said Morgan holding out his hand. "This is Pico" Pico waved at Chaell.

" _You are the one that got away. You will have to tell me that story one day_ ," Chaell said to Pico.

"I would be happy to as long as you don't kill me," Pico replied telepathically.

Chaell laughed out loud, which helped everyone relax.

"What's so funny?" said Denise coming to.

" _Hi I'm Chaell_ " said Chaell holding out his hand.

"Denise," said Denise taking his hand and containing her fear.

" _Xiao, we should monitor the battle to see how Phoebe is doing_ ," requested Chaell.

"Sah char," Xiao responded expanding her Transport device and laying it on the coffee table.

The people in the room gathered around her device mesmerized by what they saw. Uan and Malcolm were in heavy battle while Phoebe lay on the ground in pain. They weren't sure how the outcome of the fight would impact them. The person responsible for attacking Earth was now seeking refuge with them, while the person who wanted to kill Morgan and Pico was fighting to protect another alien who had been stabbed. It was so much to take in. They felt like they got dragged into a weird science fiction movie.

"Morgan", whispered Denise, "do you think Pico could incapacitate that alien?"

"Why would we want to do that?" Asked Morgan.

"Maybe if we turned him in they would reward us or let some of our people go."

"Pico says they wouldn't care. It is more likely that Uan would come back and kill all of us. If this guy gets his ship back he might help us."

"If you say so. I'll have to trust you Pico."

"What are you two whispering about?" Asked Norma.

"We were trying to figure out who we should be helping here," replied Denise. "It appears this guy is our best hope."

"I'm sure if he wanted to kill us we would be dead already. Let's just hope he doesn't decide to take us with him if he ever gets his ship back."

***

The two Ossies began a battle to the death as Chaell looked on from Morgan's living room.

"Betty and Dominique, I need you to come and help me down here on Earth," requested Calvin. "I'll explain when you get here. I'm sending you my coordinates now."

"We don't quite know what's going on, but we are one hundred percent behind you," replied Dominique.

"Ditto," replied Betty. "See you soon."

Moments later Dominique and Betty showed up next to Calvin.

"Calvin, what's going on?" Asked Dominique.

"The captain was framed as a traitor and the XO took over the ship."

"Yea, we heard," stated Betty.

" _Thanks for coming_ ," said Chaell walking up.

"Oh my goodness," said Betty startled by Chaell's presence. " _Stowtan char_."

" _Stowtan char_ ," added Dominique.

" _Stowtan bitar_ ," replied Chaell. " _I appreciate your support_."

Chaell turned his attention back to the screen to watch Uan and Malcolm fight it out. Morgan and the others were mesmerized watching the aliens fight.

"Xiao, if you could bring Phoebe here Pico and I might be able to save her," stated Denise. "She still seems to be alive."

"It's too dangerous right now," replied Xiao. "We have to hope that they move away from Phoebe so I can get to her without being harmed myself."

"Look, Malcolm's down," shouted Morgan. "Maybe Uan will defeat him."

"What just happened?!" Asked Calvin excitedly watching Uan fall to the ground for no apparent reason.

Chaell grabbed Xiao's device and zoomed out on the scene to reveal an Alpha hiding behind a rock formation with a rifle.

"I'll go get him," stated Xiao.

"Then who is going to save Uan and Phoebe?" Asked Calvin.

"I can't do both," replied Xiao.

"Drop me off with the ugly guy and you go save Uan and Phoebe," requested Calvin. "Let's move. We don't have time argue. Uan won't be able to hold Malcolm off for very long, wounded the way he is."

Xiao grabbed Calvin, gave him her sword, dropped him on top of the Alpha then popped over to help Uan.

"Hey you," shouted Xiao running at Malcolm throwing some darts at him. A couple of them pierced his body distracting him from Uan. He cloaked and went after Xiao who quickly disappeared. Xiao reappeared next to Phoebe and beamed her back to the house.

"Denise!" Yelled Xiao. "Here's Phoebe. Do what you can to save her. I'm going back for Uan."

"Morgan, help me get her into the guest room. Pico come with us."

Xiao returned for Uan. As she stepped on top of him in order to transport him to Morgan's place, Malcolm showed up next to them.

***

The Alpha was stunned by Calvin dropping in on his head. He lost his rifle, but felt he could take out an Earthling. He jumped to his feet and came at Calvin.

"Come on buddy. I want to show you something the guy you shot taught me," said Calvin pulling out Xiao's sword he had hidden behind him. He shoved the sword into the Alpha's chest and then pulling it out spun to the right and sliced through his neck.

"I guess you won't be shooting anybody else from behind rocks will you?" Stated Calvin looking at the Alpha as he staggered backwards. The Alpha just looked at Calvin perplexed, not understanding what Calvin was saying. Moments later he was face down on the ground dead. Calvin looked back to see how Xiao was doing with Malcolm.

_Where did everyone go?_ Thought Calvin looking at an empty beach except for Uan lying on his back by himself. "Yes!" Stated Calvin seeing Xiao appear on top of Uan, hopefully to beam him away. Then he watched in horror as Malcolm appeared above Xiao driving his sword through her back and into Uan's chest as the pair disappeared.

"No!" Whispered Calvin covering his mouth and falling to his knees.

***

Out of view from the others another Alpha appeared in the trees with a rifle. He trained the rifle on Uan when he heard a noise behind him. He swung around to see what it was.

"Don't shoot," said Yoyo lowering his goggles. "I'm a friend."

"Okay friend. Why are you here?"

"I'm here to stop you from killing the captain of the Euclidian ship that's in space above this planet. Can you explain the fighting that's going on?"

"Malcolm is the Ossie standing up with the weapon fighting Uan, the other Ossie. Malcolm is here to kill the captain. I don't know who that person is, pointing at Xiao."

"Where is the captain?"

"I don't know."

"I want you to kill Malcolm," stated Yoyo. "Oh no! I think he just killed those two people. Okay. Just use your weapon to kill Malcolm. Wait, those two people disappeared. Find out their coordinates. Now Malcolm is gone"

"I'll try. Transporter room, can you send me Uan's coordinates? Here they are," said the Alpha showing Yoyo his UCD.

"Thanks, I got them. Now go ahead and kill yourself," demanded Yoyo.

The Alpha's rifle could be heard going off as she had her transport room beam her to Uan's coordinates.

***

"Look! Xiao's returned with Uan and they're hurt," said Betty to Dominique. "Denise, we have two more casualties for you to look at."

"Put them in Xiao's room," Denise replied. We'll be finished with Phoebe in a minute."

Betty, Norma, Chaell and Dominique placed the bloody bodies of Uan and Xiao onto Xiao's bed.

"Who is that?" Screamed Norma pointing at a small hooded figure that appeared in the room wearing goggles.

" _I'm a friend_ ," Yoyo said in Euclidian holding up her hands noticing the shock in everyone's face. " _You must be the captain_ ," Yoyo said addressing Chaell who nodded. " _I came to help save you. The Alphas planned an attack to kill all the ship captains that were responsible for attacking their planet._ "

" _Welcome_ ," replied Chaell.

"I believe she said that she is a friend who came to help save the captain," said Betty to everyone.

***

"Captain, this is Malcolm. Can you find the whereabouts of Uan and beam me there. I have reason to believe he is with Shisal."

"Sure Malcolm. I'll have the transport room take care of that. You should be there momentarily."

A few seconds later Malcolm was standing in Morgan's house. Denise was just walking out of the guest room to take care of Uan and Xiao with Morgan and Pico following behind her. They stopped at the sight of Malcolm. Looking to his left Malcolm saw Morgan carrying Pico who was lifting his arms at him.

"No you don't!" Said Malcolm, kicking Morgan and Pico to the floor. Malcolm knocked Denise to the floor as well before turning to face Chaell. "Now your turn to die captain," said Malcolm lifting his sword above his head and running at Chaell as he cloaked.

## Acknowledgements

Firstly I would like to thank my wife Renee for her support and patience as I wrote this book. My son Davon, who runs http://FamilyLobby.com, continues to be prominent in assisting me in the creation of my book. A special thanks to Derek Canyon at http://derekjcanyon.blogspot.com/ who gave me a lot of guidance with how to publish and where to get additional assistance. I would like to thank Qiaolin Mao for assisting me with the marketing of my book. Thanks to Chris Bennett and Evette Sharps Tripp for reviewing my book.

Lastly, I would like to thank my family, friends and colleagues for their inspiration with the content of this book.

Euclidian: The Unforeseen Alliance

