Pallas doesn’t hesitate, heading straight for the abandoned bed.
“If you don’t mind, I’ll contact Kiran right away. He doesn’t live far from here.”
I activate the CCC and select channel 3.
“Kiran, if you can hear me, meet me where we last saw each other!” I say.
“What the hell are you doing?” Pherebos blurts out, eyes wide.
“Well... contacting Kiran, Neela’s brother.”
“With this prehistoric gadget straight out of the most primitive planets?” he scoffs.
“It’s the only one that works on Mars,” I snap back. “If, like me, you think that’s pathetic, feel free to bring it up with Akifumi when he arrives.”
Since I’m not sure Kiran’s listening on channel 3, I repeat my message on the other two Neela told me about—channels 59 and 23.
“There. If he’s got his CCC turned on, he’ll be here within fifteen minutes. In the meantime, I’m bailing for five. I need a shower. I can’t stand this stench any longer.”
A few dozen minutes later, I’m clean and ready to face my girlfriend’s brother. He’s going to be furious—and rightly so. I failed to keep my promise to protect Neela. I wasn’t able to keep her safe, like I swore I would.
“He’s coming,” I say flatly, hearing the approach of his snowbike.
He bursts through the door moments later, visibly panicked and pissed off.
“Furball! Isn’t it funny to find you lounging around my sister’s place, sipping her tea, while she’s nowhere to be seen? And who the hell are these people?” he chokes out, catching sight of Pherebos.
Sure, Ileana looks human—but no one would ever mistake Pherebos for anything Earth-born. The guy’s nearly seven feet tall, long pale hair braided on one side, pointed ears, and glowing lavender eyes. Hard to miss.
“Hey there, Human. Let me introduce the cavalry: Ileana, one of your kind—but from a medical research station in space, not Mars or Earth. Her partner, Pherebos, is a member of the Intergalactic Confederation, from the planet Asgarne.”
“Gnuffgnuff,” adds the four-legged companion of my two colleagues.
“Right... and this is Wingo, from... well, Wingo,” I add lamely, realizing I don’t know squat about the creature Ileana called intelligent.
“That’s it?” Kiran explodes. “You lost my sister and now you’re just casually telling me you’ve got three people and a... dog? Furball, I entrusted you with my twelve-year-old sister, and we had a deal—you were supposed to look after her and—”
“Hold it, Human! Your sister is not twelve—she’s twenty-five. Try remembering that once and for all! And believe me when I say I’ll get her back, even if it takes the rest of my life. Right now, we know where she is. All we need is a plan to break her out at sunrise.”
“Hello, Kiran, right?” Pherebos chimes in with a calm, low voice. “SILMAR, my AI, tracked your sister’s location. Neela’s aboard a ship belonging to Bully, a Penubian. They landed not long ago on the outskirts of Cydonia. I’d guess they had unfinished business with your local leader before leaving Mars. Prax tells me your leaders are corrupt. Before we charge in blindly to free your sister and the other captives, we should knowhow many we’re up against. As you rightly pointed out—we’re not exactly a large team.”
“Oh, for the love of...!” Kiran groans, collapsing onto the sofa. “My little sister’s in enemy hands and I’m supposed to trust a cat-man and an elf!”
“Gnuffgnuff...”
“And a... four-legged alien, I almost forgot.”
“Alright, Human, quit whining and help me save my mate!” I growl.
“Oh, Furball, she’s my little sister, not your mate!”
“She is! I’m going to find her, with or without your help, and I—”
“I think we have better things to do than argue,” Ileana cuts in.
“Argue? More like cat-fight,” Kiran smirks.
“Gnuffgnuff...”
