A Clash of Aliens (The Human Chronicles Book 13) (2 page)

His fear came not for his own welfare; he could handle whatever the Queen had in store for him. He was really concerned about the rescue team.

Adam held out no false hope that Riyad and the others would simply write him off and not even bother mounting a rescue attempt. He wouldn’t, not if the roles were reversed. And although he had no idea how Riyad would pull it off, Adam was ninety-nine percent sure that a second team of Human commandos would soon be entering Sol-Kor space, this time on a mission to bring him out alive.

As a consequence, men were going to die, and the least Adam could do was make their sacrifices mean something…by being alive when they arrived.

That was one option.

The other was to find a way to escape on his own, before any more lives were lost on his behalf.

To that end, Adam divided his time between exercising and surfing the equivalent of the Sol-Kor Internet, learning all he could about Sol-Kor society and preparing himself physically for when the opportunity presented itself. With the benefit of the Sol-Kor version of a translation bug, Adam found his Internet-like surfing expeditions to be quite enlightening, even though he’d found nothing on the computer to be of tactical value—at least not yet. But every bit of information helped. Who knew what innocuous tidbit would provide the spark for a plan?

When he wasn’t on the computer, Adam was beating himself up with an extremely strenuous exercise regime. With the light gravity of Kor, he had to work hard to maintain his strength and muscle mass. His natural Human abilities were his ace in the hole, and if he let his body acclimate to the local gravity he’d lose that advantage.

His watchers couldn’t understand his devotion to the exercise routine, not until he explained that it was part of his religion. They knew of the concept, based on their own fanatical worship of their Queen, so they left him alone after that.

Fortunately for him, most of the Sol-Kor were dumb as rocks and could be easily manipulated. However, there was a class of more-intelligent Sol-Kor, most of whom tended to hover around the Queen and her chambers.

And the Queen herself was the most intelligent of them all.

She was another Panur-like creature, similar to the five-thousand-year-old mutant alien who was himself a byproduct of the former Queen and another alien race. From what Adam had learned, J’nae had been created in the same manner, only using Panur and the Queen—his mother—for the necessary DNA material. Like Panur, J’nae had regenerative cells, allowing her to have already lived over six hundred standard years before assuming her role as the new Queen. She was also extremely fast,  unbelievably strong, and possessed a photographic memory and perfect recall.

Yet in spite of all her superior qualities, there was one thing Adam had learned about J’nae during their numerous sparring sessions that he found to be unexpected. Her own blows were not much more powerful than those of a strong Human male. To the native Sol-Kor, their new Queen was Superwoman, yet if it wasn’t for the fact that she couldn’t be killed, Adam was sure he could take her in a fair fight…if there was such a thing as a fair fight against an immortal mutant alien.

Adam’s musings came down to two major conclusions. One: if he was going to defeat the Queen, it would have to be by other than physical means.

And two: she couldn’t be outsmarted.

With that stark—and depressing—reality staring him the face, Adam smiled, feeling relief that all the signs kept pointing to the same conclusion.

He would have to escape on his own.

And the sooner the better. He was sure Riyad wasn’t sitting around twiddling his thumbs. It was only a matter of time before his best friend would make the fateful mistake that could cost him his life—and the lives of all who followed him.

Adam Cain wasn’t about to let that happen.

Adam Cain is an alien with an attitude.

His adventures continue….

Chapter
1

Riyad Tarazi was a man in a hurry.

He was also a man with a shit-eating grin on his face.

This was more than he’d expected. His friend Andy Tobias, the Admiral of the Fleet, had really come through this time…and now Riyad was gazing upon the meanest-looking personal starship he’d ever seen.

Officially classified as a Mark IV hybrid, she was a beauty, measuring a hundred meters from stem to stern and thirty at the beam, painted black with a swath of silver running along both sides. The sloping pilothouse had two forward-facing viewports separated by a narrow panel. Along each side of the hull was a huge gravity generator, rising above the main fuselage and rounded on top, before tapering down to a point toward the stern.

With a glow of light escaping through the twin viewports, the sleek vessel reminded Riyad of a yellow-eyed panther—head down silently stalking its prey, its haunches risen high above its body, rippling with muscle.

And this ship had plenty of muscle. According to the tech reports, it could reach an unbelievable nine hundred light, meaning under perfect conditions it could make the transit from Earth to the Galactic Core—a distance of around twenty-eight thousand light-years—in an astonishing thirty-three hours. Of course, that was a theoretical speed. There were too many annoying gravity influences along the way for him to really open her up.

But above the galactic plane…well, that was another story.

Looking at the ship, two words came to Riyad, and his beautiful new starship had her name: the
Najmah Fahd
, the Star Panther.

He needed a ship like this—a prototype—if he was to cover all his bases in the search for the mutant alien Panur, and do it in time to save Adam. His best friend was living on borrowed time. How much longer the Queen would find him entertaining was anyone’s guess, so it was imperative he found Panur as soon as possible. No one else in the galaxy knew how to access the Sol-Kor universe other than him. The mutant had invented the trans-dimensional transport portal in the first place, and Riyad had no doubt he could figure a way to get him and the rescue team back over to the other side.

That was assuming Panur would help. That outcome was still in question. But he had to be found first, and that wasn’t going to be easy, not in a galaxy as big as the Milky Way.

With the
Najmah Fayd
, Admiral Tobias had just helped Riyad cut the galaxy down to size, making it possible for him to cover more territory in less time.

Yet as a caveat to that, Tobias had also left no doubt in Riyad’s mind that there were forces opposed to his mission’s success, people who were content with letting the mutant genius stay where he was. They didn’t want to risk opening another channel to the Sol-Kor universe, one which they believed could be used to let the SK’s back into the Milky Way. He would have to be on guard.

Initially, he would take the newly christened
Najmah Fayd
out alone on his way to the planet Formil to meet with their disgraced Speaker to the Gods, Arieel Bol. She had information he needed, as well as a unique link to Panur’s companion, Arieel and Adam’s daughter, Lila. But this was just the starting point. He knew there would be many more stops along the way if he were to find the hiding place of the elusive alien mutant.

If all went well—and that was assuming a lot—he would return to California with Panur, to the grounds of the former Travis Air Force Base, where a new strike team was being assembled.

Riyad didn’t know how Panur would get them into the Sol-Kor universe, or if he’d even help at all. Yet if he did, it could be as simple as tweaking the TD-portal they already had back at Travis. Or he could come up with some completely new.

Or…none of the above. Riyad was operating in the dark.

As it neared midnight in Phoenix, Riyad prepared to step aboard his Mark IV hybrid prototype for the first time. The craft was sequestered within a super-secret area of the Union Developmental Technology Section outside the city, and he was the only person on the tarmac at the moment. The sky was clear and his spirits were soaring. He stretched out one of his trademark brilliant white smiles, soaking in the entire experience. No matter the odds against his mission succeeding, at least this part of his next exciting adventure was getting off to a great start…

********

The moment Riyad stepped through the hatch, he knew something was wrong. It took only a breath for him to identify the source of his unease, and when he did he was livid. This was a complication he didn’t need.

“Sherri!
Where the hell are you?”

“Back here, claiming one of these staterooms. Damn, they’re nice.”

Riyad followed the scent of the perfume aft to one of the four staterooms, and was immediately presented with a pair of well-rounded hips wrapped in a form-fitting pink velour jumpsuit staring up at him in all their feminine glory. The woman finished placing a box under the bed before standing and turning to face him.

“Perfume a little too strong?” Sherri Valentine asked with a smile. “You always had a keen sense of smell.”

Riyad was at a loss for words. Sherri’s brilliant blue eyes seemed to glow above her high cheekbones; her tan skin stood in healthy contrast to the cascade of wavy blonde hair reaching to just below her shoulders. She was a beautiful woman, that he had to admit, but this was not the time to let himself get distracted.

“What…what the hell are you doing here?”

“I’m here to help.”

“I didn’t ask for any help.”

“I know. That’s why I’m here. You obviously aren’t thinking straight if you believe you can pull off a mission like this all by yourself.”

“Mission? Myself? How do you even know about my mission?”

“I still have my sources, sweetheart.” Then her face turned serious. “And this is about Adam. You wouldn’t expect me to sit this one out, now would you?”

“I would, and I did. You’re married now, and with a kid.”

“Married, no...miscarriage, yes.”

Riyad was taken aback. He also had his sources, yet this was the first he’d heard of his ex-girlfriend’s divorce…and miscarriage.

“I’m so sorry. I hadn’t heard. What happened?”

“Fate, I guess. But the doctors say I can still have children. And about Ricky—dude, he was a friggin real estate agent!” She rolled her eyes. “We’re talking boring with a capital ‘B.’ All he ever talked about was location, amenities, and how much square footage something has.” She cast Riyad a sexy twinkle in her eye. “Not like my two favorite galaxy-hopping alien assassins. C’mon, Riyad, a girl has to have her standards.”

Riyad shook his head. “No…this isn’t going to happen. I’m headed for Formil to get Arieel’s help. The last thing I need is for the two of you to get in a catfight over Adam again.”

“Give me some credit, Riyad. I’m over him—and you too for that matter. All I want is to help, and maybe relive some of the old glory, the old adventure. I’m not getting any younger, you know.”

Riyad couldn’t help himself. “You’ve held up pretty well from what I can see.”

“You really think so?” Sherri beamed, while reaching for the zipper of her form-fitting, powder-pink outfit. Slowing, she began to pull down on the metal tab, revealing a generous helping of tanned cleavage.

Riyad’s jaw fell open…just as Sherri promptly re-zipped the garment.

“Men…you’re so gullible.”

Riyad shook himself out of the trance. No matter how appealing she could be—at times—nobody liked Sherri Valentine, for a variety of reasons. He’d asked around. The sentiment was universal.

“No way. You’re too much of a distraction.”

“Tough lucky, buddy, you’re stuck with me. You might take a closer look at the requisition papers for this tub we’re in. They’re countersigned by Fleet Secretary Arness.”

“So what?”

“My ex sold him his house…and now his wife and I are BFF’s. You’ll see I’m listed as a co-signer on the release docs. You ain’t taking this ship nowhere without
my
permission.”

And that was why no one liked Sherri Valentine.

“I thought you didn’t want to live this type of life anymore?”

Sherri sat down on the edge of the bed as the smile ran away from her face. “We’re talking about Adam. He’s trapped in another universe, being held captive by a horde of flesh-eating aliens. The thought of him being stuck on the end of a Sol-Kor fork is just too much. I know you’re determined to get him back, and, well, so am I. You have to admit, my motives are pure. No one loves Adam Cain more than I do.”

Riyad studied her face. “Are you sure about this? There’s no guarantee of success.”

“I know, but it sure beats sitting around here doing nothing…or letting others fight the battles for me. And besides, you know I got skills.” The sly smile returned.

“Rusty skills…but yes.”

“I’ve been staying in practice. I won’t let you down.”

Riyad stared into Sherri’s hypnotic blue eyes and saw both sorrow and determination. He nodded. “Fine, you can tag along. But promise me that you and Arieel will try to get along. On top of everything else, I don’t need the two of you going all supernova on me.”

“It won’t be me going supernova, Riyad, that I promise. As for that alien bitch, I can’t vouch for her.”

Riyad felt a shiver run down his spine.

And so it begins…