Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
*** HESHER ***
H esher finished the training session. He was satisfied that his soldiers were ready.
They were to the point of becoming dangerously frustrated with waiting.
The daily transformations and use of dragon fire had riled their beasts into a frenzy.
An outlet for it was needed. He would go to check on the progress of the ship's repairs.
If they were not done, he would order around the clock shifts to finish it.
It had already taken two extra days, and there was no more time to waste.
Lydia was outside the ship, circling it. Daer and Marcus were with her. All traces of her casts and Marcus's bandages were gone. Her recovery was quicker than anticipated.
"Good day Commander," Lydia greeted him.
He smiled at her effort to hide their relationship in front of others.
She was afraid her crew would lose respect for her authority if they knew about her nights with Hesher.
He went along with the game she was playing, though he was aware they were not fooling anyone.
Their feelings for each other were evident in their faces as well as their body language.
Steamy nights took away the formality and stiffness between them .
"Captain, it is good to see you able to walk without aid and wearing your uniform once more. Is the entire crew healed now?"
"The crew and the ship," she replied. "We were just admiring it. I thought we might have a celebration. Would you care to join us for some whiskey? I keep a small stash for special occasions. I think this is one of them."
"I have only a moment or two, but if you are ready to discuss our departure, I will take the whiskey. Word has come from Kelan that things are worsening on Earth and my soldiers are restless to get things underway. Talonia's ships have been sitting idle, fully loaded and ready for takeoff."
His words sounded terse, almost like a reprimand to Lydia.
She felt pushed, and it brought out her temper.
"We've worked tirelessly beside your own people to repair the ship.
I don't need to be reminded how dire the situation on Earth is.
They're my people. You act like we've been sitting around basking in the sun while you got your soldiers ready.
I assure you, commander, that's not the case. "
"I said no such thing," Hesher growled. "You are twisting my words. I simply stated some facts I thought you should know."
"It's not what you said; it's the way you said it. Your condescending attitude makes me feel like you think I'm too stupid to see the urgency of leaving," Lydia retorted.
Daer jostled Hesher's arm and whispered, "Well, we have found her. I am going to hold you to your promise. Take her as yours."
"We did not find anything. I did. I have already taken her as mine, so stay out of this. It is none of your business. Go home to Shara," Hesher growled back under his breath.
"Stop whispering! Whatever rude comments you were making should be said out loud. I don't appreciate being ignored," Lydia shouted .
Hesher eyed Marcus before carefully replying, "I will honor that command when we have a smaller audience. We should keep this discussion focused on business."
Lydia's eyes narrowed. She was angry but had to admit that Hesher was correct. This was not the time or place for an argument between lovers. "Fine, let's have the whiskey. You'll be glad to know that we can leave as early as tomorrow."
Daer excused himself from the celebration. He muttered to himself, "Watching them argue is too much like foreplay. I need my mate."
Ten Talonian ships left at dawn along with the Outreach II. Hesher commanded the king's ship, with Lydia's close behind. They had settled their argument with passion at their favorite meeting place, only boarding their ships in time for departure.
Despite the king's reluctance to allow it, Maxxus had taken command of a warship.
The king feared losing his successor, but Maxxus held to the idea that he should be present for the alliance since it would be him who had to deal with the humans in the future.
He prided himself on being able to detect lies and was determined to face the leaders of Earth to attest to their truthfulness.
Lydia was allowed one transmission to the leaders of her world. She could only tell them the bare minimum, stating, "Outreach II is repaired. We are coming home to help in the battle against the aliens. We are bringing reinforcements. More information will be forthcoming as we get closer."
She and Hesher had made the choice to limit information until the last moment.
Fear of yet more aliens, especially weredragons, could cause more trouble than aid.
Humans might panic and do foolish things.
Riots, looting, and the murders of innocents happened when people panicked.
They didn't want that on their conscious.
Revealing themselves when they were almost upon Earth would not allow time for that panic to set in.
Hopefully, the weredragons would be seen as heroes, not evil entities .
Hesher stayed in communication with Lydia throughout the trip.
She had been trusted with the open communication Kelan had reinstalled in her ship.
True to her word, she only listened in on Rankin World Defense.
She never said a word or allowed her crew to do so.
She and Hesher discussed strategies for overcoming the aliens.
"How will you be able to recognize which ones are them," she asked.
"They appear human unless they are attacked. You can't attack everyone."
"Scent," he explained. "We can separate the scents of different gases that humans cannot.
It is because of the volcanoes and our symbiotic relationship.
They may appear as human, but to our senses, they will not smell like them.
Have you decided to which cities around your planet we will send our ships?
Pick those who shelter your most powerful leaders.
That is where the enemy will concentrate their efforts to take over. "
"I can name most of the countries, but not specific cities yet. The leaders have been moved around almost weekly to places the enemy would not suspect. It's protection in case the aliens get into our capitals. For now, they are not aware the leaders are not inside anymore."
"Excellent strategy! Your leaders are very skilled in outmaneuvering the enemy.
In that case, we need not know where the leaders are.
In fact, it is better that we do not. The enemy would follow us, so we should go to where the aliens believe them to be.
Do you understand and find my reasoning sound? " Hesher inquired.
"Yes, I do. I will give you the coordinates of the ten cities within the hour.
We have people from every country on board my ship, so I can't be the one to choose the country we go to.
I would be biased and choose my own. May we go to the one you choose?
My crew will accept that since you hold no loyalty to any place in our world," Lydia asked.
"I find that I am biased also. My loyalty is to you and possibly Kelan's company.
So, I would guess it will not surprise you that I choose your country.
You may make me the scapegoat of any anger from your crew.
You should know, I would not have allowed your ship to go where I did not.
I will protect you with my life. Others may benefit from that protection, but it is only you that I would voluntarily die for. "
When Earth became visible, it was time to warn them of the approaching ships before they were picked up by the planet's detection devices.
The Talonian ships would not be recognized, and Lydia's ship was hidden, surrounded by the others.
Considering the level of fear the humans were contending with, it was understandable that they would fire first and ask questions later, if anyone survived.
Lydia gathered her courage and prayed she would be blessed with the right words to make Earth's leaders believe the weredragons were their salvation rather than their worst nightmare.
"Earth Station Alpha, come in. This is Outreach II.
Open channels to all stations. Relay the messages to our world leaders. Vital information is incoming."
"Outreach II, we hear you. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we must ask that you prove your identity. We need your ship's call numbers and the identities of your three top-ranking officers, including birthplaces."
"Your precautions are commendable given that you have been invaded by aliens who can appear as humans.
The call numbers are J62577V. Captain Lydia Valor speaking.
My birth place is Boulder, Colorado. Second in command Marcus Perez was born in Valencia, Spain, as was his sister, Sophia Perez, our ship's medical officer and third-in-command. Is that sufficient?"
"It is. We're opening communication channels and video. You may proceed with the message."