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Jenny walked into the Council room, in clean clothes and a clean, white bandage on her arm. Her head barely hurt now, but she was assured that she didn't have a concussion and the pain would stop eventually. Tarafau was Tarafau again, but he did have a concussion and was ensconced in a very large bed with many pillows, a bandage around his head and an ice pack strapped to that. He was a little muzzy, but said he wasn't in any pain and wanted to get out of bed. The healer had put a guard in his room, as much to keep him company as to guard him.
Jenny felt relieved and saddened at the same time. Happy that he would recover, but it hurt to see him helpless and in pain, regardless of the brave front he put up.
Myla met her at the door, his arms outstretched to embrace her. "We're so glad you and Tarafau are safe," he sent, cooing audibly as he was wont to do.
The other two were seated on the dais, looking into one another's eyes, obviously in the midst of a conversation. They turned, however, as Jenny walked to the front of the room.
"Welcome, Gatekeeper," said Liliath formally. "Our commendations and commiserations on your ordeal and the way you handled it. Lizzie made a splendid choice."
Ingot nodded; his brows furrowed in concern. "What do the healers say?"
"Tarafau will recover and my injuries are minor," Jenny replied.
"Not so minor," Ingot said. "I heard you will bear scars for the rest of your life. The healer's say that something on that blade has insured it."
"I hope I do carry them, as a reminder that I can do hard things. And Tidbit loves butterflies."
Ingot nodded, looking into her eyes. "You carry also the gratitude of the entire Alliance. You have proven yourself worthy of your title."
"All I did was keep my mouth shut. Burt and Bob were the ones who should be praised. They found me and rescued me and captured the spy. She is no Earthling, Ingot. I don't know where she comes from."
"You are right, Jenny. She is a Fleistian. They call her the Queen of the Groga, but she has no Groga blood, that we can tell. She is pure evil and has proven this over the course of many years. She institutes the raids and tortures and enslaves those they capture. She also has certain shape-changing abilities, which is why she was able to blend in so well on Earth.
You cannot be faulted for not recognizing her. We didn't and we have known of her for a very long time. It wasn't until she transformed into her regular appearance, we realized what she was. She has been well-trained and has scores more years of experience than you've been alive."
"That may be, but she is about to find out that Earthlings have a very important trait. We are survivors and we aren't very good at being pushed around. When all is said and done we are more than we seem as well. I won't stand for her letting the Groga on my planet or anywhere in my universe, if I have anything to say about it."
Ingot grinned, but then sobered and shook his head.
"Contrary to what we previously thought, I am afraid they are already there. We must discover a way to locate them and purge Earth of their influence. We must discover if they have moved beyond the boundaries of Earth, into farther reaches of your universe. This isn't finished. It is only beginning. Until we have determined the extent of their influence, we may not rest or feel secure. I am sorry, but this is truth."
Jenny sighed, both grateful for his truthfulness and feeling unworthy of his praise. "So, what are our next steps? I know she had some minions hanging about that cabin, so there are at least a few of them still there. And my first question is, how in the heck did they get there? I met Sam nearly 6 years ago at school. So, they may have been there at least that long. Miriha's first words to us, when we got to her was 'They're back,' which means they're not a new threat and at some point, they have gotten access to the network. This means the network is compromised. This means we're all in danger.
My second question is, what can we do about it? How did you defeat them before?"
Ingot hung his head and Myla and Liliath shook their heads almost in unison.
"We didn't," Liliath sent so softly in her mind that Jenny almost didn't catch it. "We beat them back and nearly destroyed them, but we never defeated them. They stopped attacking us, because we outnumbered them and outclassed them in weaponry and tactics. When they stopped raiding, we stopped pursuing them. We had the best of intentions, but it was a mistake."
"They are guerilla fighters, strictly hit and run," Myla put in. "They are careful to sneak in, overwhelm their prey in a swift and unexpected attack and then they vanish with their captives before anyone can do anything about it, nor do they leave any trace to tell us where they might have gone."
"So, we're just gonna sit here and take it?" Jenny knew she was probably being unreasonable, and she hated the hurt she saw in their eyes. That didn't change the fact that she really needed some answers and for some reason she had thought she would find them all here.
"No, Jenny, we are not only not going to sit here and take it, as you say, but we are mobilizing every agent we have in the dimensions that have been raided. This includes those on Earth. There will be a meeting at Sanglarka tomorrow, to organize your resources to begin to search for the Groga on Earth and to neutralize them. You will be in charge of the meeting and Tarafau will advise you as you go."
He saw the hope for Tarafau in Jenny's eyes and nodded. "Our healers say he will be able to attend the meetings and will be able to help organize your effort. He must, however, not do anything physically strenuous for at least a couple weeks."
Jenny breathed out a sigh of relief. At least one thing was going right. She had been so afraid that Sam had killed her Guide. As Tidbit, he was very vulnerable, even though he was scary when he was in battle mode, as Cinder had discovered. As Tarafau he was formidable. Sam had attacked him when he was helpless, something, evidently that she was good at. "Sneaky Sam," she thought to herself.
As if it was a cue, suddenly an alarm blasted through the building. The klaxon was loud, and a bright light filled the room. It was a see-through read out that hovered in the air before them. Jenny got the feeling that each person saw the screen as if it centered on them and in their own language. "Subject escaped. Lockdown in progress." The message flashed in red letters on a light green background.
Ingot waved his hand and the image faded and the alarm ceased.
"Be seated, all. We can do nothing for the moment until security clears the building."
"Does this mean what I think it means?"
Ingot nodded morosely. "Engoza has escaped."
"Engoza?"
"You know her as Sam. Her real name, or the name she goes by, is Engoza. It translates as 'knife of death'. I doubt it is the name she was born with, but anything is possible, I suppose."
"I will never dignify her by calling her by that name. From now on, to me, she is 'Sneaky Sam'. She would hate that and that's just fine with me." She folded her arms in front of her chest, hugging that thought to her.
"So, she has escaped? Even with all of the security you have in this place? How is that possible?"
"We won't know for sure until the report from the security team," replied Ingot. "I myself cannot imagine how this could have happened. In over a century, nothing like this has ever occurred."
Liliath was visibly agitated. Up until now, Jenny had only ever seen the kind and stately side of her draconic nature. But now she could see how the legends of fierce and terrible dragons must have come about. The slitted pupils of her reptilian eyes had narrowed, her nostrils flared, and her teeth were bared in a snarl that made Jenny want to turn and run. She hissed audibly and turned to Ingot. "We can no longer tolerate this. With Engoza free and the latest raids, it is like before. There is much more to this than it appears, and we must eliminate this threat once and for all."
She then turned to Jenny and appeared to be forcing herself to calm. "Jenny, there is no way for you to know how serious this is. On your world there have been horrific battles that have engaged your entire planet. Think of that same intensity of death and destruction across worlds, galaxies and universes. Think of the devastation that can occur when a malignant force such as the Groga have access to the network of gateways to unlimited dimensions. Even a relatively small force can wreak havoc and despair beyond our imagining, if their access is not revoked.
Like your predecessor, you are in fearful danger. For whatever reason, you were targeted long before Lizzie made the final choice to put you in the position of Guardian. The fact that you attracted the attention of Engoza, as you did, is troubling. It means they have access to intelligence that we do not. It means this is much bigger than last time.
Originally, the Groga stumbled upon the network by chance at a gateway on their world that we had not yet established in the network. When we discovered this, through much sacrifice on the part of our agents and after much destruction on several worlds, we searched out the gates on that planet, in that dimension and closed them. It appears we missed a gateway and they have obviously searched it out. We know they are no longer on their original planet.
More than that, they have been careful this time to set up strategies and tactics that are very much unlike them. In the past they only took slaves and things of value, like jewels and precious metals. Now their target seems to be every bit of tech they can acquire and especially any tech related to the gate network.
I fear they have joined forces with a more devious race and therein lies our problem. Somehow, they may have access from a point that we do not know and that is not in our known network of gateways. Who knows what technology they may have access to that they did not have before? This is a new war, with new variables, and we cannot rest until we have destroyed their access permanently."
By the time she finished this explanation, Liliath seemed to have herself back under control, but a small wisp of dark smoke dribbled out of one nostril, which she waved away.
Myla nodded. "We fear for you and the dimensions in the Alliance. At this time your Earth is in danger such as it has never experienced. If we are unable to locate and destroy the access of the Groga and whatever or whomever is aiding them, the entire network is compromised, and we may have no choice but to bring the governments of Earth into the Alliance, to protect themselves. As The Gatekeeper, it will become your responsibility to see to this, if it becomes necessary."
Jenny sat there in shock. It had all seemed an adventure until Sam and the Groga had been thrown into the mix. All of those dimensions to learn about and explore, everything she was learning and her kind reception into the Alliance as a Guardian. But since Miriha's death, it had escalated into a nightmare from which she couldn't awake. She couldn't go back to her comfortable little life. She couldn't view the world from her safe space online. The beautiful little garden with its herbs and butterflies and koi pond was no longer any kind of refuge.
There was nowhere to run or hide and these people and all of the people of the dimensions were counting on her, a twenty-something ghost-writer, to save them from ultimate evil. How insane was that?
But instead of voicing her fear, she said, "What must I do?"
Ingot's warm smile was as good as a hug. "For now, you need to wait for the building to clear. Then we will prepare Tarafau to travel back to your gateway. We have already sent agents through to Earth to aid Burt and Bob. Bob has agreed to make his home headquarters for the agents there. The other Guardians have been notified and they will be in touch. It is vital that your training continue. It is also vital that you be protected. Therefore, we will continue as we have already decided."
At this point, another sound, less urgent, rang out. The transparent screen appeared again. "All Clear," it stated and then disappeared.
Almost immediately after that, two of the security squad marched into the Council room.
"There is no trace of her, Councilors," the stern-faced guard reported. "We did a thorough search of the building by scan and room by room. She is no longer on the premises."
"What happened? How did she escape?" Jenny demanded, only realizing after she spoke that it wasn't her place to question him.
Ingot looked at her meaningfully and turned to the guard expectantly.
"We don't know. We had visuals on her, both electronically and through the glass window to her cell. One moment she was there and the next she was not. We rushed inside and searched thoroughly then set the alarm and searched the building."
"I think you will find, when you review the recording, that she was still in the cell when you searched it," inserted Myla dryly. "We should have remembered that one of the abilities of the Fleistians is camouflage. Like the chameleons of Earth, they have an ability to blend into the background of their surroundings so well that they can seem to disappear. When you opened the door to search the cell, you allowed her to escape."
Both guards hung their heads, the shame apparent on their faces.
"You could not have known," Ingot said. "The fault lies with us. We should have remembered. Be at ease."
The guards nodded almost in unison.
Ingot said briskly, "We cannot un-ring the bell. We can only move forward. Assemble the guards in the situation room and we will be down shortly. We must put some new security measures into place."
This was an obvious dismissal. The guards turned on their heels as one and marched back out of the room.
"Now we will go see to Tarafau. Please come with us." Ingot led the way out of the Council room and onto the elevator. Crammed in there with the dragon, Jenny could now appreciate the size of the elevator, compared to the little boxes on earth. She could feel Liliath's breath on the back of her neck and had a flashback of reading The Hobbit as a kid. A phrase her mom had often said came to her mind, "Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, because you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup."
She shook her head, this was no proper time for such thoughts, but it did make her smile.
They got off on the infirmary level. The stark whiteness was relieved only somewhat by the dimmed lighting. A healer approached them and reached out a hand to Myla. She turned to the group.
"Tarafau will be well. His concussion was milder than we first expected. It appears that his kind, partly due to their shape-changing abilities, have an automatic mechanism in their physiology that shuts them down when a certain amount of damage is done to the cranium and allows the body to begin repairs. He will still need to limit physical activity. No sparring or running or any activity that will jar his head. He does not like it but has agreed to cooperate."
Jenny's anxiety eased, just a little. She could no longer imagine her life without Tarafau. She knew she would never be able to complete her tasks and do her job without him to guide her and to be her friend.
"Thank you, healer," Jenny said, grasping the healer's long fingered hands in her own. "There is no way to express my gratitude."
"We all have learned to love Tarafau over the years. This is not his first visit to my infirmary. Hard-headed old cat."
They entered Tarafau's room, where he was seated on the edge of the bed, a dressing wound around his head.
"What happens to the dressings when we return to Earth?" Jenny asked.
"They will continue to do their job," replied the healer. "We really don't understand the science completely. When he is bandaged in this form, the bandages continue to work, even though you can't see them on the cat. He will appear to be uninjured in that form. While you are in Sanglarka, have Arvid continue to treat him. I will forward him instructions."
"Are you ready to go home?" Jenny asked him tentatively.
"Lead the way," agreed Tarafau grimly, flexing his fists. "We have work to do."
