Hotbloods 6: Allies

“Thank you, Commander Mahlo.”

As the screen flickered off, Bashrik got the ship back in the air, moving us toward the flashing beacon. This time, when he moved us through the shield, there was only a faint bristle of energy before the ship descended beneath its protective exterior. As soon as we were through, I gaped at the vision before me. A vast, chrome structure of several metal domes stood beneath the cover of the shield, stretching across a large area of the moon’s immediate surface.

Other vessels were parked in an expanse of open space. The Fed ships were instantly recognizable, reminding me of the one we’d used back on Earth, during that first mission to find the rebel base. Although, back then, we’d thought we were only looking for shapeshifters. We’d never expected a band of rebel coldbloods. I shuddered at the memory.

“How do you know Commander Mahlo?” I asked, turning to Ronad.

“She was one of the agents I had to beg for a position in Siberia. I ended up reporting back to her a lot. We’re good pals,” he replied, with a cheerful smile. “Plus, we share a mutual love of Earth TV.”

“Is that all aliens do here—watch trash TV and eat human food?” I remembered Mort’s taste for cheeseburgers, quickly pushing the memory of the shifter out of my head.

Ronad grinned. “Pretty much. I can’t vouch for all human food, but I will say that reindeer blood is freaking delicious.”

I gaped in mock horror. “Not Rudolph!”

“Only at Christmas,” he said with a wink. “I’ve yet to sample those delights.”

As the ship came to a halt and Bashrik killed the engines, a small crew of lycan Feds emerged from the main entrance of the domed structure. They headed straight for the cruiser, every single one of them armed to the teeth, as expected, and dressed in the skintight black suits that I remembered.

“I suppose we better meet them at the door so they know we come in peace,” Navan said with a wry grin. He took my hand as we all headed for the entrance hatch. My stomach twisted with nerves. After all, the moment the lycans agreed to our plan, it would mean we were preparing for all-out war.

“Commander Mahlo has requested your presence,” the first lycan agent remarked, his tone surprised, as we all stepped down the gangway to greet them. “Although, we did not realize there were so many of you.”

“Will she mind?” I replied.

The lycan shrugged. “I guess not. Follow me.”

With our lycan escort, we moved across the surface of the moon, the ground almost sandy beneath our feet. The shield appeared to be augmenting the habitat, pumping oxygen into the space so we could breathe. Still, it took some getting used to, looking up at the stars and the lunar landscape while feeling oxygen in my lungs.

We entered through the sliding metal blast doors of the HQ, arriving in a foyer with marble floors and a desk in the center. It all seemed very familiar to me, but I knew this couldn’t be the same one I’d visited last time. There was no way I’d come to the moon without knowing about it.

The lycan crew took us straight across the foyer and down a hallway, coming to a halt outside an ordinary-looking door. The first lycan knocked on it and then ushered us all inside.

Commander Mahlo was waiting for us on the other side, her eyes showing the same surprise that the lycan crew had shown at the sight of so many of us. She shook it off quickly enough.

“Haka, would you fetch some more chairs?” Commander Mahlo asked, gesturing for us to sit wherever we could find space while the other lycan hurried outside to get more seating.

As soon as we were settled, she spoke again. “So, what is this danger we’re in? We’ve been monitoring the planet closely, so I’m interested to know what you’ve discovered that we haven’t.” There was a strange note in her voice, making me wonder if she was holding something back.

I smiled dryly. “Let’s just say that Earth is going to find out about aliens very, very soon.”





Chapter Thirty-Nine





“Please, enlighten me,” Commander Mahlo purred.

I gave a tight laugh. “It’s not going to be quick.”

“As you can see, I have the time. Otherwise, I would’ve left you out there on the lunar surface.”

I shrugged, glancing back at the rest of my group. They all wore encouraging expressions, spurring me on. After all, this was what we’d come here for. If I didn’t tell her everything, there was no way we were going to get the lycans on our side, and, right now, we needed all the help we could get.

“Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Steeling myself, I gave her a rundown of everything we had endured and were about to face, with the others chiming in where I’d skipped over something that might be important. I told her of Orion, Ezra, and the elixir, and how they were likely to be gaining ground with it as we spoke, following it up with a detailed account of the imminent threat headed our way—Queen Gianne would be arriving any day now, given her advanced deep-space technology, and we had to be ready for her when she did.

I explained what we planned to do with the nudus, as a means of defending Earth against the aerial onslaught of Queen Gianne, while Navan reminded her that we would need help combatting the rebels on the ground. It was going to be a battle from all angles, which meant we were going to need the lycans’ cooperation, especially where the human population was concerned. Something would need to be done to cover up the sudden appearance of a bright blue light in the sky.

Commander Mahlo looked at me as I came to the end of my rapid relay of intel. She had said nothing the entire time, her nostrils flaring subtly. I peered at her, listening to the sound of her sniff, my brain recalling a lycan skill from the last time I found myself in the Fed HQ—it appeared that Commander Mahlo was a veritas, or truth-smeller. I guessed that, even though the trait was a rare one, the Feds had enlisted a few veritas to their ranks. Realizing what she was, I grimaced, hoping she hadn’t scented anything she didn’t like in what I’d said.

“What you tell me is true,” she said, at last. “Indeed, I should’ve known to trust you. You were a friend of Galo’s, were you not?”

I nodded. “He was kind to me, though I didn’t know him very well.” I paused, unsure whether to continue. “Orion used him, Commander Mahlo… and he died trying to help us. I’m sorry, but we were forced to bury him on Vysanthe. I know it’s not what he would have wanted, but it was the only place we could lay him to rest.”

A sadness flickered across Commander Mahlo’s face. “I suspected something terrible might have happened to him,” she said with a sigh. “He disappeared some time ago, and nobody heard any word of him. We presumed the worst… and it seems we were right. I was promoted in the absence of Commander Sylvan. Galo should have been the one promoted, but when he disappeared too, I took on both their jobs. Truly, it ought to be him sitting here instead of me, but such is the way of the universe.”

“I really am sorry, Commander Mahlo. I’m sorry about Commander Sylvan, too. I didn’t see what happened to them, but they were captured trying to help us. He was a brave man, just as Galo was.”

“At least you had the decency to bury my friend. As for Commander Sylvan, what happened to him was a travesty, though we could do nothing to free him,” she replied. “Now, we must look to greater things than mere revenge. Remind me of your plan for Earth? I’m not certain I understood what it is you wish to do.”

Gesturing for Stone to lift his hand and show Commander Mahlo the nudus around his wrist, I explained again what we planned to do with the curious creatures. I could see she wasn’t convinced, but there was no turning back from this now. This was the only way of keeping Earth safe, no matter how risky it might sound.

“There must be more to it than a simple shield?” Commander Mahlo said, frowning.