by G. E. Stills
“You know I do.” Molly raised her arms in supplication.
Naa’dia leaned in once more. This time their kiss was open mouthed. Her tongue curled around Molly’s. Her left hand brushed along Molly’s curves and finally came to a stop cupping one breast. When Naa’dia drew away, Molly was breathing heavy and her face was flushed.
“Damn you’re a great kisser.” Molly winked. “You’re great at other things too.”
“You’re pretty good yourself.” Naa’dia slid into the co-pilot seat beside Molly’s and sipped her drink.
For a while the two of them sat in silence gazing out the clear front shield at star filled space. At the ship’s speed, the starts blurred slightly and changed position slowly.
“So what are your plans when we get to Earth?”
“I haven’t decided for certain. When Mark stranded me on Constiga he took off with most everything I owned, so shopping is the first order of business.” She flashed Molly a smile. “I haven’t been to Earth in…well it seems like forever. I may have a few distant relatives there, but none that I know. I’m just lucky you and Felis happened along and offered me a ride otherwise I’d be stuck on that backwater planet, Constiga.”
“You could have always gone home and joined the rest of your family on Ormel,” Molly reminded.
“Yeah right with my tail tucked between my legs and listening to my mother say I told you so. I told you Mark was no good. No thanks.”
“Well whatever you decide, we’ll be in Sol system in a few more hours,” Molly said.
Naa’dia finished the rest of her drink. Looking to the side, she saw that Molly’s was empty too. Naa’dia stood and scooped up both glasses. “I’ll take these to the kitchen and be right back.” Naa’dia set the glasses down and removed her top. Molly glanced up when she reentered the bridge. Molly’s eyes grew wide when she saw Naa’dia bare from the waist up. She inhaled loudly when Naa’dia sat down facing her in her lap.
“Naa’dia we can’t. Felis may come in here and catch us.”
“I took the liberty of peeking into your room. The lights are out. He’s sleeping,” Naa’dia said. “Raise your arms. Unless you don’t want to?” Naa’dia cocked her head
Molly’s raised her arms a smile on her face and Naa’dia removed her top. The skirt had bunched up around Naa’dia’s waist exposing the fact that she was not wearing any panties. For just a moment Naa’dia let Molly feast her eyes on her bare sex then leaning forward, she kissed her.
Naa’dia reached behind and removed her knife from its hiding place then wrapped her legs around both Molly and the chair, hooking her ankles to hold them in place. She leaned back and Molly looked up to her in question. Placing her hand over Molly’s mouth she drove the knife in Molly’s heart three times twisting after each thrust. Blood gushed out spraying both of them.
Naa’dia released the knife letting it clatter to the floor then tightened her arms, pulling Molly to her in tight embrace. For a moment, Molly’s hands clawed at her back frantically, but then they relaxed. Molly’s screams of agony muffled against her breast. Blood trickled down Naa’dia’s stomach to soak into her skirt.
“Sometimes I regret that your people and mine hate each other so much,” Naa’dia said.
Molly’s rapidly beating heart slowed, skipped a beat and then another. The woman took a final shuddering breath and then her heart stopped completely. For a time Naa’dia remained motionless holding Molly to her, kissing the top of her head. When she leaned back, the thick red fluid had dried some and pulled at their skin, seemingly in attempt to keep them united. She gazed down at the wounds she had inflicted. Both her breasts and Molly’s were painted deliciously red. The deep penetrations still oozed some, the liquid trickling down between them and across Molly’s belly. More blood soaked into her own already saturated skirt
She at last released her legs and standing, turned to face the control panel. She made the proper adjustment to bring the ship to a halt. Reaching down she hefted Molly’s body to her shoulder and tracked down the hall. Riding the lift down, she placed the body in the decompression chamber. Naa’dia retraced her steps and placed Felis’s body beside Molly. She removed her saturated skirt and dropped it on top of the bodies. After a quick shower to wash away the blood and putting on underwear, Naa’dia returned to the lower level. Naa’dia dressed in one of the spacesuits and returned to the chamber. Closing the inner door, she waited until the chamber had evacuated before opening the outer one. Picking up each body, she shoved them into space along with her skirt.
Naa’dia carefully removed all blood traces from the craft. She typed out a coded message to her superiors knowing it would be weeks before it was received. All is going as planned. I have obtained a ship and expect to arrive in Earth space in hours. Have been unable to learn anything about Teelan. I will transmit again when further information is available.
Naa’dia moved the ship a few parsecs and halted it again. She set about gathering most of Felis’s clothes, Molly’s that didn’t fit her, food scraps, emergency ship repair parts and anything else she could think of that was non-essential. She jettisoned everything. With that done Naa’dia sent out a brief mayday.
She engaged the drive and left the area. She was certain that her mayday would bring response. When rescue found all the floating debris she hoped they would reach the erroneous conclusion the ship had exploded.
A chuckle slipped from her lips. “Regardless, I don’t intend to be here anyway. If they don’t assume an explosion, they’ll be searching the wrong area. I’ll be in Earth’s solar system by then.”
CHAPTER THREE
The Comfort entered Earth’s system and Naa’dia quickly took bearings on her location. She spotted her desired target, fired a brief burst with the engines and powered down. Hours later, she fired the engines again placing the ship stationary behind Neptune’s moon, Neso. Naa’dia did not know how sensitive security in the solar system was, but the chances her small ship had been spotted in the outer extremes of the solar system were small. Especially in a powered down condition and hidden from sight behind the moon.
It’s a risk I must take. It won’t be the last.
Naa’dia waited for hours using passive detectors to see if her intrusion raised alarm. Nothing. “Good.”
She searched through Molly’s closet and picked out a few changes of clothes. Dresses, skirts and blouses. The pantsuits were too short. She filled a clutch purse with cash then placed all of the items she was taking in a small suitcase.
Naa’dia carried the suitcase and her bag below and stowed them in one of the two seat life pods. Slaving the ships main computer into the life pods, she downloaded the Earth coordinates she had picked. After a final check, she sealed the hatch. She detached from the main ship and fired the engines long enough to attain the computer heading.
Last leg. My journey is almost over. A few days from now I’ll be on Earth.
Her hands danced over the keyboard as she typed in the override commands. She would forego the automatic program. There was no need for a lengthy suspended animation slumber, her target was only a few days away. Programming finished, Naa’dia snuggled back into the comfortable seat, closed her eyes and quickly went to sleep.
***
A buzzing woke her. Naa’dia opened her eyes and gazed through the view screen in wonder at the rapidly approaching world. Deep blues, greens and browns covered the planet. Glancing down at the display screen on the control panel provided better detail. The memories obtained from the dead woman were correct.
There were a few artificial structures in orbit around the planet, but nothing with the capacity to produce the huge number of spaceships the humans had. In addition there was a surprisingly small number of spaceships and not one of the huge battle-cruisers the enemy had. From history, she knew that a large Men-gar fleet had been dispatched to subdue or destroy all intelligent life on
Earth. They were met in the outer reaches of this solar system by a massive human fleet including many of the kilometer long battle-cruisers. Only a few of the Men-gar ships had been able to escape.
How is this possible? Where are they?
There was nothing to evidence the massive defense and offense capabilities of the human’s home world that were known to exist. Naa’dia punched in commands. The capsule turned and fired a burst from the main engine shedding the tremendous near light speed velocity quickly.
The risk was great that the humans would spot her capsule during these maneuvers, but it was one that must be taken. There was no choice. Naa’dia held her breath and watched for any indication she had been spotted. Her exhale of relief was loud in the small cabin when the main engine winked out and no reaction from her enemies was apparent.
Adjusting the view screen to greater magnification, she began her search for a place to set down. The one she decided on was not too remote, but at the same time a safe distance from the nearest population center. Denver, the computer identified the city.
The capsule dropped like a stone through the night sky firing braking rockets in the last seconds before it splashed into the mountain lake. It plunged deeper and deeper shedding its velocity and at last came to a halt. Next, it started its upward climb. It bobbed to the surface and small maneuvering jets kicked in to direct it toward the shore. It settled to the ground and became silent.
Gazing out the view screen, Naa’dia waited until the area began to brighten with the dawn. Once it was fully light, she opened the hatch and stepped out onto the ground. The surroundings did not remotely resemble her home planet. Trees grew thick just feet from the shore, but they weren’t violet and red like she was used to. Instead, the forest was a mix of green and brown. The calling of birds was the only sound.
Stooping down she picked up a handful of black dirt feeling its texture. Earth. I’m on Earth, her lips stretched into a smile, and so far, it appears, undetected. Scanning up and down the shore, she spotted a wooden cabin almost hidden in the trees. Quietly, she crept up to the structure and stood at the edge of the small clearing in front of it.
The single door opened. A man wearing a checkered shirt and blue denims walked out. He was carrying a long thin rod in one hand and a case in the other. Naa’dia stepped forward approaching him. With a jolt, the man looked up.
“Damn, Missy, you scared me.” His gaze drifted over her, taking in her short skirt and baggy blouse. “You’re hardly dressed for hiking in the mountains. Where did you come from?”
Not saying a word, she struck without warning. Her fist blurred forward driving into the man’s stomach, causing breath to whoosh from his mouth. He dropped the long stick and case placing his hands to his belly. Went he doubled over in both surprise and pain she grabbed both sides of his head. With a violent twist, she snapped his neck. He crumpled to the ground, his dead eyes fixed with a look of shock.
Naa’dia grabbed him by the shirt and dragged him into the cabin. She tossed the body to the side and began her inspection of the cabin’s single room interior. On the nightstand next to the bed, she found keys to the truck parked outside, a comb, eyeglasses and some loose change. On the small table was a fanny-pack with nothing of interest inside. Next, she examined the elderly man’s pockets which yielded a wallet. Naa’dia learned his name was George. She removed the contents and stuck all of it in the fanny-pack which she belted around her waist.
Finding nothing else of interest, she shouldered the body and retraced her steps to the capsule. She dumped the body in one of the seats and removed her two bags. Naa’dia removed her clothes and kicked off her shoes before climbing back in to the craft. She idled out to deep water, used maneuvering jets to tilt it to the side and opened the hatch. Water flooded in. Naa’dia kicked from the seat of the rapidly sinking craft and swam to shore. While she dressed, she watched the capsule sink beneath the water’s surface in satisfaction.
Naa’dia sat in the truck for a few minutes, familiarizing herself with the controls. When she opened the glove box, she discovered the owner’s manual. After scanning through the pages, she inserted the key and started the vehicle. She learned how to work the built in GPS and punched in the address given on the man’s id. A route appeared on the screen. Guiding the vehicle was tricky at first and several times, she nearly drove into trees. By the time she had driven the thirty kilometers to the city, she controlled the truck with much greater confidence.
Following the directions displayed, she arrived at the small frame structure located on the outskirts of Denver where George lived. Naa’dia used a key and let herself into the house.
“George is that you? My, you’re home early. I didn’t look to see you until late this evening,” a woman’s voice called out from the other room. “Fishing must have been really bad for you to be home this early.”
Following the sound, Naa’dia slipped into the room. The elderly woman was facing away from her making the bed. In three silent strides, Naa’dia crossed the room. She chopped down with the edge of her hand striking the woman in the back of the neck. The force of the chopping blow drove the woman face first into the mattress where she bounced twice. The body settled to the bed, twitched a couple times and became motionless.
Naa’dia waited in silence. From the odd angle of her head, Naa’dia was certain the woman’s neck was broken. Reaching out she felt for a pulse and found none. She turned dismissively and checked the other rooms to make certain there were no more humans present. There were none and to all indications, the woman and man were the sole occupants.
Good, now I have a place to headquarter.
She strolled through the house examining things and reading anything she found. She turned on the TV and Radio tuning them to News. By the time she crawled into bed in the extra bedroom that night, she knew much about the deceased couple and how to access further information.
The next day she booted up the computer sitting in the corner and scrolled through the information she found online. She began selecting her targets. Exhaustive searching only yielded vague references to Teelan and no information.
Naa’dia removed a small transmitter from her bag and stepped into the back yard. She typed in, On Earth. Not detected. Proceeding with mission.
She pointed the transmitter into the night sky and pressed send. The tiny unit had limited range. It would reach the Comfort. There it would be routed to the Comfort’s powerful transmitter and sent in a burst to those listening. The message would take weeks to be received, but it would be received.
Draining the dead couples accounts proved to be little problem and provided the much needed funds for her plans. She planned to leave this Denver residence the next day. And none too soon. After two days the woman’s body is starting to stink.
***
Naa’dia stood in the shadows in a wooded area watching through binoculars. Three days driving and two stolen cars brought her to this location just outside of Williamsport, Pennsylvania. People filed out of the large factory that covered several acres. It was late afternoon and shift change. Her research showed the factory produced Glouton, a paste like substance. When a small amount of Glouton was combined with other foods, it multiplied their nutritional value by a factor of a hundred. A single loaf of bread could feed two-hundred people. Glouton was shipped all over the world and fed millions of people.
Naa’dia recalled her investigation. A small portion of the product was unaccounted for. She couldn’t follow the trail of that portion online, but she suspected it went to the mysterious Teelan.
She fixed her attention on an individual wearing a business suit that walked from the security gate and got into a red sport car. That is my immediate target. Glenn is the head of security and will doubtless be able to provide much information. She dashed to her own car and waited near the exit gate when he left the facility. She followed him at a discrete distance.
> After an hour’s drive, Glenn pulled into the garage of a nice frame house located in a suburb. Naa’dia drove past the house, parked on the corner and waited for darkness to fall while watching to make certain Glenn didn’t leave. When she judged it was dark enough, she moved further away. Before leaving the car, she pulled down her pants and removed the small ray-pistol hidden beneath the skin of her right butt cheek. Naa’dia locked the car up and returned to the residence on foot. She scaled the wall of the backyard, avoiding the swimming pool and went to the sliding glass door.
Thumbing the pistol ray to low intensity she melted the door lock. Sliding it open, she crept inside. The first room she entered was a kitchen. A woman, she was certain she was Glenn’s wife, stood by the stove cooking. The woman turned at the slight sound Naa’dia made on the tiled floor.
“Who––” she started.
Woman is a threat to mission success and not needed, Naa’dia’s thoughts told her. Thumbing the pistol up to the high setting and in a lightning fast motion, she fired at near point blank range. The ray burned into the woman’s head between her question-filled eyes. She tumbled to the floor without another peep.
Naa’dia ears perked when she heard a sound from another room.
“Honey, did you start to say something? And what was that noise?” The male voice was getting closer.
Naa’dia raced across the room and pressed to the wall beside an arched entrance. Glenn walked through and his attention went to his wife crumpled on the floor. Naa’dia struck. A single blow to the head, which she held back on at the last second, rendered Glenn unconscious.
She rushed through the house searching each room. Evidently, their teenage daughter was not home. Rummaging through the kitchen drawers yielded a roll of duct tape. She tossed Glenn into one of the swivel dining table chairs, taped his hands behind him and then taped him to the chair. A glass of cold water poured over his head revived him.