Alien Assassin (15 page)

Riyad watch as a puzzled look crossed Ross’s face, but then quickly vanished. “The Juireans will soon be coming to question us,” Ross stated. “You must not say anything about your relationship to us.”

“That’s fine. No problem.” Then in a whisper, “But where are the Klin? Did any of them survive, too?”

Several of the other men crushed in next to him, before Ross leaned in only a nose-length from Riyad. “You must
not
mention the Klin. I will do all the talking regarding them. Do you understand?”

Riyad just nodded quickly. It had been such a long time since he felt really outmatched, yet these hulking Humans looked serious – and unafraid. Again, he had to step very lightly around them.

Then as quickly as the conversation had started, it was over. The men turned their backs on him and returned to their original clusters or positions around the room, leaving Riyad pressed up against the wall, with more questions than when he’d first entered the room. These men were not normal. They showed no surprise at seeing another Human; on the contrary, they actually seemed upset that he was there. After having his pirate fleet completely crushed, then watching the battle turn abruptly in favor of the Juireans – and now this – Riyad was thinking this day couldn’t get any stranger.

He was wrong.

Riyad stationed himself near the grooming station and sat on the floor, leaning against the wall, just watching. Kyle Ross was definitely the leader; all the other men paid him great respect when he approached and never engaged him in any back and forth dialog.

A couple of times throughout the two hours he sat there, Juirean guards entered and brought food and drink. The guards were armed, and Riyad could see how the thirteen Humans – plus himself – could have easily overpowered them and taken their weapons. As he played out the scenarios in his head, the former terrorist could see how it would be possible for a small number of vastly stronger, quicker and more durable Humans to take over the Juirean ship. Yet no one seemed to be even contemplating a plan.

Finally Riyad had had enough. He stood and approached Kyle Ross.

“Mr. Ross, may I have a word with you?” Riyad said politely, even though he was seething inside.

Ross turned slowly from his group and eyed Riyad up and down, again with a condescending air. The others in the group moved away.

When Ross didn’t speak, Riyad filled the silence. “I don’t know what the ultimate plan is here, but I’ve seen at least two occasions where we could have overpowered these guards and gotten the hell out of here. Do you have any plan at all, or are we just going to sit here and let the Juireans call the shots?”

Again, Ross did not immediately speak up. Then: “We are on the Juirean Fleet Commander’s flagship. We would not stand a chance if we attempted to escape—”

“Excuse me – but bullshit!” Riyad said. “I know for a fact that the fourteen of us are every bit the equal of a hundred Juireans. I don’t understand why we’re not doing anything.”

“You do not have to understand. You are not part of our group. You were not asked to interfere in the battle, and therefore you do not have any input.” Then he paused for effect before continuing. “You have lived a life among the aliens, and you are a native-born.”

“What the fuck does
that
mean?”

 
Ross ignored his question and continued. “You have no concept as to the events you are attempting to influence. I respect the fact that you are a fellow Human being, but that fact will only allow you a certain latitude as to your presence here. Now once again, I will tell you not to interfere, and to let the events play out as they should.” Ross then turned on his heel and walked away.

Chapter Thirteen

 
“There!” Fleet Commander Siegor said, as he pointed at the monitor. “That one has once again confronted the leader.”

Counselor Kronss nodded. “Yes, he appears not to belong to this pack. He’s the one who was taken from the pirate ship, and that Lord Yan’wal has flagged. He appears to be very agitated. It may be a tribal conflict of some sort.”

Siegor had been watching the monitor for over an hour, studying the dynamic among the creatures in the holding cell. Lord Yan’wal had been very surprised to learn that the attacking fleet from Dimloe had consisted entirely of these…Humans, he called them. Siegor had never seen this race before, but reasoned that the Overlord had additional information the Fleet Commander was not privy to.

Yan’wal had been even more upset to learn that not a single Klin had been found, not even among the dead. A strike team had been quickly dispatched to the surface and found the remains of their base on Dimloe. It had been destroyed, and even in the wreckage, not a trace of the Klin. Then to top it off, only one Klin/Human spaceship had been salvaged intact, and that was the one these Humans had surrendered at the conclusion of the battle.

So whatever secrets they would learn about the technology and intentions of the Klin would all have to come from this one ship and the Humans in the holding cell.

Siegor told the Counselor that he would begin his interrogations now and directed him to bring in the apparent leader of the Humans, along with the dark-haired rebellious one. It would be interesting to study their interaction during the questioning. Often what was
not
said could reveal more than what was actually spoken.

In fact, as guards entered the holding cell and selected the two Humans to accompany them, Siegor noticed on the monitor that the red-haired Human began to protest loudly when the other Human was singled out to join him. It wasn’t until four more guards swept into the room and forcefully pulled them out that the leader appeared to accept the situation.

Under heavy guard, Riyad and Ross were brought into a cold metal room with bare walls and strapped into chairs before a single metal table. Then a hulking Juirean, with his distinctive mane of light green hair, entered and took a seat across the table from them. The guards remained.

After a few moments of silence, the Juirean nodded to the guard next to Ross. Abruptly he lifted his flash rifle and smashed it hard against the side of Ross’s head. Ross immediately screamed out in pain, nearly falling into unconsciousness. Then the guard next to Riyad did the same to him. The blow was strong, but not incapacitating, not nearly hard enough to knock out a Human. Riyad did not cry out, but rather simply shook his head and stared back at the Juirean.

After a few moments, Ross appeared to regain his senses. Riyad sensed that something just didn’t seem right…

“I hope I now have your attention,” the Juirean began. “I am Fleet Commander Siegor. You have committed the gravest crime against the Juirean Authority and The Expansion. There will be no mercy, not in light of the tremendous loss of life and material your attack has caused.”

“Fuck you!” Riyad spit out. “It was
your
ships that attacked us!”

Ross suddenly sobered up and shot a stare at Riyad that could freeze water.

The Commander glanced down at his datapad and at the transmission he had received just moments before entering the room. “You would be Riyad Tarazi, the titular leader of the now-disbanded Fringe Pirates.”

Riyad was taken aback slightly with the revelation. “So my reputation precedes me.”

“Don’t flatter yourself. You are simply a side note to the main events taking place here.” Then Siegor turned to address Ross. “What I’m more interested in learning is who are
you
, and what is your association with the Klin.”

Ross sat up a little straighter and stared back at the Juirean. “I am Kyle Ross,” he stated with authority in his voice, “and the more appropriate question should be, what is the Klin association with
us
.”

Ross’s bombastic attitude seemed out of place to Riyad. There were so many contradictions in Ross’s entire demeanor that Riyad was just as anxious to hear the results of the interrogation as was the Juirean. Someone around here – either these odd Humans or the mysterious Klin – knew the location of Earth. And that was all Riyad was ultimately interested in.

The Juirean recoiled slightly at Ross’s statement. “What do you mean? You are using the technology of the Klin and harboring their kind. I will get this information out of you – or from one of your fellow beings—”

“We are harboring no one.” Ross interrupted. “We have used the Klin for our purposes and have extracted all the information we need from them. They resisted at first, but what few of them who were left have scattered after the attack. They are of no further use to us, or to anyone else.”

The Juirean Commander was speechless for a moment as he stared at Ross. Riyad was stunned as well. Finally the Juirean regained his voice. “You cannot be serious. You make it sound as if
you
are the masters and the Klin are the servants.”

Ross nodded. “That’s right. We Humans are the
true
force in the galaxy, as you will soon learn.”

“No, Human,
Juireans
are the superior force, and have been for thousands of years. You are just an insignificant race using the technology of a near-extinct civilization.”

Ross just laughed. “So you think the Klin provided
us
with all the technology and weapons that allowed us to nearly destroy your fleet? I
can
say that the Klin have helped augment our ships and weapons. But it was we who manned the ships and guided the weapons.”

“And it was you and your kind who were defeated in the battle.”

“This is just the first of many such battles. Once our forces on Earth are ready, we will lash out at your kind with no mercy.”

Riyad could not believe his ears! What the hell was Ross talking about? Unless things had changed drastically on Earth in the past seven years, his homeworld was nowhere near capable of competing against the Juirean war machine. And from his brief conversation with Adam Cain, nothing much
had
changed on Earth since he’d been taken. Unless, of course, an entire underground operation was taking place on Earth, preparing for the coming battle…

“Where are your other bases!” Siegor demanded as he nodded at the guard next to Ross again. And once again the butt of the rifle crashed into Ross’s temple. This time Ross simply shook it off.

“There are no other bases, and only a handful of the Klin still exist. And they are under
our
control. We were the forward base, keeping an eye on your activities.”

“Then where is this planet Earth of yours? You will tell me, now!”

Riyad perked up. This could be it—

“I will die before I will tell you, Juirean!”

Shit!

Siegor pushed back from the table and stood. “You – or your other Humans – will tell us. I guarantee it. As we peel away your skin and pluck out your eyes, you
will
talk! You will know more pain than you have ever imagined, and each of you will watch the others die, knowing that they will soon be experiencing the some agony. Believe me when I say, one of you
will
talk.”