A different decibel in the sound indicated another speaker. “Destination?”
“FiPan. Deliver to Dred Pirate Maynwaring. Return toStarChancefor another cycle. Do not deviate,“ the first one answered.
A third voice. “Zerin operative. Trustworthy?”
“Zerin operative irrelevant. Task execution is primary objective,” the first voice answered.
This one had to be the leader.
“Maintain communication. Report status upon delivery. No deviations tolerated.”
“FiPan environment. Precautions?” The second voice spoke again.
“Standard protocol. Avoid local interaction. Deliver and return. No deviations.”
The quiet shuffling of what had to be bare feet on the floor followed.
Morgan waited, making sure they didn’t say anything else. When all was quiet, she took a few steps to the side. Not wanting her voice to carry, she frantically typed into her handheld. Good thing she’d downloaded all the data the Zerin ship carried.
Analyze conversation to determine species.
It didn’t take long to get an answer. Her stomach dropped as she read through it.
Description: The Friebbigh are male/female hybrids originally from the planet Fibona in the North-Western section of the galaxy. They are gray in skin color with a large bulbous head and have enormous almond eyes with a black pupil. Two vertical slits for a nose and one small horizontal slit for a mouth. Small in stature, around 4‘5“ tall, with thin, stick-like arms and legs. They are adorned in a skintight outer-suit that is the same color as their waxy gray skin, giving the appearance of wearing no outer garments. They communicate telepathically with each other but refrain from doing so with all other species, which they deem inferior. To converse with other races, they have a “voice box” attached to their suit that transmits their thoughts into speech. Nothing is known about their reproductive process.
Warning: The Friebbigh rank as notorious criminals within the Federal Consortium. Wanted for arms dealing, kidnapping, slavery, and war crimes. Authorities suspect them in multiple unsolved assassination attempts against members of the known civilized factions. It is against Consortium law to interact with this species in any manner other than to kill or arrest. Any other form of interaction constitutes treason. All perpetrators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Wow, this was worse than she imagined. Known criminals here on theStarChance, ready and willing to kidnap human women. Without overthinking it, she sent everything she’d downloaded to her grandfather in Aethralis, even though it would take weeks for it to get to him.
She ended the missive by saying she wouldn’t report her findings to the captain of theStarChancesince the Friebbigh indicated they had a Zerin operative. No telling who that was. She’d have to dig deeper first.
Turning to head back to the service elevator, she almost ran into one of them. Squealing like a dolphin in pain, it held up its spindly fingers and waved them in the air. Before she could knock the creature out, a burning, sharp pain pierced her neck. Slapping her hand over the offended spot, she turned to see an unknown female Zerin behind her. The only thing she grasped was the female’s deep red-wine colored hair and a long, clear cylinder device held in her three-fingered hand.
“Sleep well,human.“ The Zerin sneered.
Too bad the stupid alien didn’t know Morgan wasn’t all human.
Present Day aboard the spaceshipNebula Viper
Ari eyed the small streak of grease on Morgan’s cheek. The temptation to feel her smooth skin against his was almost hard to resist. The only way to keep from touching her was to clench his hands into tight fists.
He tilted his head with a wide smile. “Morgan, eh?”
“Ari, eh?” Morgan returned his smile.
Ari chuckled with a shrug. “I guess so.” He scratched the side of his head and glanced around the cluttered bay before focusing back on her. “So, what’s a pretty girl like you doing in a dump like this?” He favored her with his best sultry smile and heavy-lidded gaze. At least he assumed it was his best. Hard to know.
Instead of his actions warming her up, her golden-green eyes narrowed. Her full lips turned downward into a harsh frown.
Ouch.
“I told you, we don’t have time for that crap.” She sliced her hand through the air. “The Ozevroc will show up before we know it, to see if you’re alive. And I’ve got to finish something first.”
Ari’s eyebrows rose. “Ozevroc? What’s that?”
She rolled her eyes. “Hang on. Let me finish this before we get into that.”
Morgan thumbed behind herself to the place he’d first seen her sitting on the floor in front of an open panel on a large machine standing away from the metal wall. Without another word, she went back to it and sat cross-legged in front of it. Picking up a thick cylinder from the floor, she bowed her head over the open panel, pursed her full lips, and clicked on a thin blue light on the cylinder. It pulsated as if repairing something inside.
