Josephine was surprised. "I thought Ixia was your leader."
They answered, "He is the leader of our expedition, not of our planet. As long as we are here, we must obey him. He was given complete authority to take over this planet."
"You said he was to take over the planet. So, that means your leader knew it was claimed by another species. Why did he set his sights on a planet claimed by someone else?" she asked.
The pair looked at her like she was an ignorant child. In this matter, she guessed it was the truth. They answered, "All uninhabited planets are claimed by someone. If you need it, you must fight for control. Sometimes, you can take it over by settling there before the true owners find out. Then they usually let it go without a fight."
Josephine stated, "This time you came prepared to fight. Ixia is assembling the battlebots now. How many does he have?"
"Only four or five. They are too heavy for the ship to carry more when there are terrabots aboard. It is all we will need."
"You believe that four or five battlebots can overcome the Milisarian Knights?" Josephine wasn't so sure. "The knights are powerful warriors. They have conquered many worlds and now hold them under their domain. What makes your species any different?"
Only one patient answered, "The battlebots are not our best weapon. We have another."
"What is it? What will it do? Is it on board the ship now?" Only silence filled her head. They refused to answer and betray their leader's secret.
Worry followed Josephine from the infirmary. What terrible weapon was Ixia hiding? What damage would it do? He was always so calm and confident of winning. It must be an impressive weapon if he wasn't worried about the mighty Milisarian warriors. Should she warn Urim? Could she? She certainly wouldn't be able to steal another hovercraft. Ixia was always watching her now. Hopefully, he was still spying on the Pura and would see this new weapon in time. If it was frightening enough, he might take his warriors home to spare their lives.
The ship was empty. All the Pura were outside assembling the battlebots. Josephine decided to search the ship for clues to the weapon. If she could gain access to their communication center, there was a small chance she could reach out for help. She opened doors to sleeping chambers, food storage, and a conference room. She had a hard time understanding why it was needed. They could access each other’s minds from anywhere and block out the ones they didn't want listening. So far, there were no clues to the weapon. The next door was locked. Due to its location, she imagined it was Ixia's chamber. She tried to override the computer lock, but it was impossible. The only other room on this level was the main control room she entered each day. She would have liked to search the lower levels but had not found a way to reach them. There were no stairs, ramps, or elevators in sight. She took her only option and entered the control room.
It was still an awesome sight. The room appeared to be carved out of one piece. Even the electronics seemed to grow from the walls. It all gave the impression that the spaceship was alive, and the computers were its organs. The seats and consoles would be its arms and legs. Josephine couldn't resist trying out the seat that obviously belonged to Ixia. It stood in the center of the room and had controls on each armrest. She ran her fingers across the controls, hoping for a response. Nothing happened. She pushed every button. The screens remained blank. Oh well, it was time to try the other stations. She went through every one of them. No controls responded, and she found nothing that indicated a weapon powerful enough to destroy the knights.
Outside, she discovered that two of the battlebots were complete and stood as sentries by the waterway. Ixia confronted her, "You were inside a very long time. Are the patients getting better?"
Josephine replied, "They are healing. There was a rash. It seems they were allergic to the stitching materials. I removed them and used a skin glue instead. They will be more comfortable now."
He asked, "Did you enjoy your exploration of the ship? The control room is quite impressive. My seat is very comfortable." Seeing confusion on her face, he added, "You must understand that you cannot hide from me. You have no secrets that I will not uncover. I assume that you did not find whatever you were looking for and the ship did not respond to your human touch. That is as it should be. Go now. Find something else to occupy your time." He dismissed her with the wave of a hand.
