Chimes sounded from the console on his desk. What a time for an interruption.
He pulled up the display and frowned when he saw his brother's face. "What do you want?"
"Our security team orbiting Cnidaria has stopped a Luthurican freighter."
The Luthuricans had rocklike skin that could withstand extreme temperatures and harsh conditions. They hailed from a binary system several light years away from Zanthar, but their trading routes ran through this system.
"A scan revealed that it was carrying traces of Hareema DNA. Major Ontarii questioned the captain and crew, and according to his report, they found one of their crewmen dead and shoved into a storage crate. The body had been decaying for weeks, but the problem was that the captain had seen the same man that very day."
"A Hareema infiltrator."
"Exactly. The captain thought the stowaway had to have come on board during their last shore leave on a gas giant in the same solar system as Earth."
"Did Ontarii capture the infiltrator?"
"No. He'd disappeared two days before the security force stopped the freighter."
"Or he'd started posing as another crew member. Maybe even the captain himself."
His brother scowled. "Ontarii initiated strict confinement protocols, and ordered his men to remain in pairs at all times, per standard protocol."
"No DNA tests?"
Drake's coloring was a mixture of yellow and orange. Anger and fear fought for control of his brother's demeanor. "The Luthuricans' exoskeletons are too tough to penetrate. They're working on a way to take a sample, but until they figure it out, no DNA testing is possible."
"Dammit," Xivthar growled softly, his complexion turning yellow. "Institute standard protocols planet-wide. No one is to be alone, and hourly electrical exchanges are required."
"Understood." The Minister of Defense hesitated.
Xivthar lost his patience with his brother. "What?"
"Has the Earthling female given you any information?"
So his brother knew he was with her, and he obviously didn't approve.
"I was questioning her when you called."
"Has her DNA been tested?"
"Yes, the scientists confirmed her species when they first took her into custody."
"That was nearly six hours ago. If the Hareema have infiltrated us, she could have been replaced by now."
Xivthar frowned. "You're right. I'll have her tested again."
"We need to know how she took out our defenses. If she doesn't talk soon, we'll have to resort to other means. And if she's Hareema..."
"I'll deal with it."
Xivthar waved the display away and focused his gaze on the female. The display had been set to his ears only, so she wouldn't have heard the exchange. There was no time left for back-and-forth. Perhaps her tactic had been to delay him all along so the Hareema forces could gather.
They couldn't have sent a more suitable agent, he thought. She was made for me.
An exotic Earthling female. It appeared his fetish for human females was the worst kept secret on Zanthar. And maybe the whole system. If Sylvia was really Hareema, it would be easy to find out. All he had to do was shock her.
She'd held up her palms earlier to show him her burns, which had disappeared. Maybe they had healed quickly, or maybe she'd been replaced by one of the Hareema who hadn't replicated the burns.
The Hareema were insidious. They hailed from a planet on the outskirts of the system, a planet that wasn't too different from Zanthar. In its real form, a Hareema was a seven-foot tall rectangular jelly. Not very threatening.
However, it was rare to see a Hareema in its real form. The jellies had the power to replicate any living creature for short periods of time, usually between six and eight hours. The Hareema then had to return to gelatinous form for several minutes before it was able to transform again.
This special skill made the Hareema especially adept at defeating a civilization from the inside out. Many planets had fallen to the Hareema Empire, but not Zanthar.
The Zantharians' ability to emit powerful shocks of electricity worked against Hareema physiology. It forced them to return to their original form. This ability, and a strong planetary defense plan, had kept the Hareema at bay for centuries.
But now it seemed the Hareema had discovered Earth. They planned to use its people as a means of penetrating Zantharian defenses. And Xivthar planned to stop them. By any means at his disposal.
