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I refused to disclose the existence of theDartand its stealth technology to the Tula, even if they were now our tentative allies. And theDaredevilneeded to protectARK 1, which still needed to remain out of sight. That only left a few options.
They’d allowed Tark to approach me, but Kirel and Sul remained sequestered by the main door, two Tula guarding them.
I pointed to Kirel. “I need my comms specialist.”
“Fine.” She gestured, her gold chains tinkling with the movement. I’d seen such displays of wealth in videos but never in person.
When Kirel reached me, I said, “Contact comms specialist Mol-Lee and have her tell Captain Wrin to fly theArrowhere for a meeting with our new allies. He should bring one of our special guests with him.”
He nodded, his clever eyes not showing a single flicker of surprise. He’d caught all of my secret messages about theDartand theDaredevilstaying away. And he’d also known exactly what I meant by “special guest.” When we’d rescuedARK 1, we’d captured a new type of Grug—one that walked on two legs and fought but seemed to have no mind of its own. We’d see how the Tula reacted to realizing the gray aliens had made soldiers and hidden the fact from all the other species in the seven sectors.
Sul grinned, clearly relieved that I’d just told his Mol-Lee to return to the safety of theDaredevil.
Now I needed to see my own fated mate safe.
Kirel’s comp chimed. “Comms specialist Mol-Lee says the captain is on his way.”
“Good.” I’d hoped Wrin would agree to the meeting, but it hadn’t been guaranteed.
“What now?” Sul asked.
As much as it grated on my nerves, which demanded I take my mate to safety immediately, I said, “Now we wait.”
TheArrowwas much larger than theDartand therefore faster. The captain should arrive within the hour. It took most of that to time to finish sorting out everything in the lab. All of the guards had eventually woken, and the fact that we’d stunned instead of killed helped the others to stop looking as if they wanted to end us.
Once they’d gathered the sheets of zurilium foil and loaded them onto a robocart, Senator Bila’s guards marched us to the passenger docking bay to wait. When Vree followed, the head guard tried to protest.
“It’s our cleaning bot, not one of yours,” I growled.
The senator waved her permission, and we continued along, using the main avenue that ran the length of the asteroid’s interior cavern.
Every step burned my thigh like fire, but I refused to let the Tula see.
The light tube still glowed at its lowered nighttime level, and the street remained empty.
Curiosity finally got the better of me. “How did you know we were here?” How exactly had my mission gone to frek?
“An alarm went off the moment you started the atomic 3D printers. The Grug built it into the machines. They don’t allow for unauthorized use of their proprietary equipment. They’ll have been notified as well.”
Frek, this mission was doomed from the start. Or maybe not. Now that we’d foundARK 1, we needed allies. The senator wouldn’t have been my first choice—I didn’t trust her on a personal level—but I did trust that she’d do whatever she could to protect herself.
And the gray aliens were a serious threat.
“What will you tell the Grug about why the machines turned on?” Zo-Fee asked.
Senator Bila flicked her claws. “I’ll have my people make a small, relatively innocuous computer virus.”
“You can’t let them know it made zurilium,” I said.
Her sharp eyes turned to me. “Is that what that is?” She gestured to the stack of foil following us on the robocart.
“It is.” Zo-Fee had already told me that the senator’s people would soon figure it out. Telling the politician hurt nothing and made us seem more like allies.
The docking bay held one amazingly expensive pleasure craft—the senator’s—a few combat shuttles, and several larger passenger shuttles. There were even a few mining craft mixed in. Their crews would have delivered their hauls of raw ore at the other end of the asteroid, then come in for some rest and relaxation before heading back out on another trip.
TheArrowslid through the ship airlock and settled to the rock deck in front of us. Captain Wrin exited without an armed guard in a show of trust. Not that one Zaarn—no matter how good a fighter—could take out the dozens of Tula surrounding us.
No, diplomacy offered our only path forward. Thank frek the captain was here to take over. Talking to people was a nightmare. And the senator’s smooth political doublespeak made me want to wring her neck.
