Chapter Two

The soft rumbling of Bandit’s purr had all but put Xan to sleep. The orange and white striped kitten was curled up under his chin as he leaned back in his seat, his feet propped up on the console and his eyes closed. He gave the kitten another scratch behind his ears, enjoying the warmth and soft fur of the tiny animal.

Forget all the other resources Earth had to offer. If they decided to start exporting cats as pets, they would make a fortune. Xan didn’t understand why every human on the planet didn’t choose to have a dozen of the animal companions.

Then again, it seemed more like Bandit had chosen Xan. The kitten followed Xan wherever he went and demanded attention whenever it seemed to suit the animal. Bandit especially liked to jump up on the control console when Xan was trying to pilot the shuttle.

At the moment, though, they were between ferrying jobs. Cyan was saying her goodbyes to her best Earthling friend after spending the afternoon gathering genetic samples from several of the woman’s cats for her xenobiological studies.

From past experience, Xan knew their “goodbye” could take over an hour—not that he minded at all. It gave Xan a chance to enjoy some quiet time with his favorite Earth being.

Bandit had seemed to have a blast playing with the Earth cats. As night fell, he quieted down and came back to the shuttle to hang out with Xan, though.

“Shuttles might not be as fun to fly as a skimmer, but they sure are more comfortable,” Xan said. He sank deeper into his seat and closed his eyes.

He heard Cyan board the ship and then the door start to close. She ran up to the cockpit, her steps fast enough that Xan quickly straightened.

Bandit let out a protesting meow, then jumped over to the console, sitting on the flat space between the controls and the front viewport. Xan took one look at Cyan and knew something was wrong.

Her scales had dulled from their normal emerald green to a pale lime, making the black and sky-blue stripes along her back stand out strikingly. Her golden eyes were wide, their pupils thin slits, and she was wringing her hands in front of her chest. Most disturbing of all, the silver bands of her exosuit kept rippling and changing shape, almost as if it didn’t know what she wanted it to do for her.

Xan had no idea what would happen if a Vegan lost control of their exosuit, or even if it was possible. He really didn’t want to find out.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Wrong? Nothing is wrong. Everything is fine.”

She sat in the seat next to him, and reached for a safety restraint. Her exosuit suddenly expanded, forming straps that wrapped around the seat, securing her in place.

“What…” She pulled on one of the bands, then swatted at it. “Stop that. Stop that! Ugh.”

He’d never heard a Vegan make a noise like that before.

“Vapor pits!” she said.

“Whoa.”

Bandit let out a crackly meow that sounded almost like a laugh.

“Watch your language,” Xan said. “There’s a child present.”

“You are right. I am sorry.”

She took a deep breath, then let it out. The straps released the seat and settled back in their earlier configuration. Very deliberately, she reached for the shuttle’s restraints and strapped herself in.

“Did you and your friend have a fight or something?” Xan asked.

“My friend? What do you mean?” She cast a wide-eyed glance at him and turned a shade paler. “What friend?”

Xan gestured toward the house. “You were saying goodbye to your Earth friend and now you seem upset. Did you get into an argument?”

“Oh, no. Nothing of the sort.”

“Okay…”

Xan started going through system checks. He’d done them so many times it was easy to divide his attention between that task and whatever Cyan needed. Bandit batted at his hands as Xan ran his fingers over the etchings that served as the shuttle’s controls.

“I take it you’re ready to head back to the Reckoning?” Xan asked.

“I um…” She was wringing her thin fingers so hard, he was afraid she’d break them. “Actually, I was hoping we could make a brief stop on the way.”

“Sure. Where would you like to go?”

“I am still determining that.”

Xan paused in his work, then turned to look at her. Bandit used the opportunity to jump into Xan’s lap. He butted his head against Xan’s chin, demanding attention.

“All right, all right,” Xan said, petting the kitten and urging him to sit. “Now settle down. Our friend is upset, and we need to help her.”

Bandit turned on Xan’s lap and sat up straight. He angled his head, his orange ears perked toward Cyan.

With all the trips he’d made bringing Cyan to Earth to study this group of cats, he’d had a chance to hang out with other specimens. None of them seemed remotely as smart as Bandit or his sisters onboard the Reckoning. The commander’s bondmate theorized that growing up in space was affecting them somehow. It was as good a theory as any.

“I thank you for your concern,” Cyan said. “But I will figure this out on my own.”

“Cyan…” Xan shook his head, uncertain how to proceed but also unable to stand seeing her so upset. “I’ve piloted you to Earth quite a bit over the last few months.”

Most of the Vegans chose to fly themselves to and from Earth when they needed to take trips. Cyan was…not the best at controlling vehicles, though. Apparently, super-advanced technology didn’t make them all super-advanced at piloting or driving things.

“As the Vegan’s chief xenobiologist, it is to be expected that I would explore our new homeworld’s ecosystems and study the beings living there,” she said.

“I’m not complaining. It’s just… We’ve spent a lot of time together.”

“Yes, we have.”

“I like to think I’ve gotten to know you fairly well,” Xan said. “And that we’re friends.”

“I…” Her cheeks regained a bit of color. “I think of you that way also.”

“I can see that you’re distressed.”

Bandit let out a plaintive meow and raised his paw, making a gentle petting motion toward her. Xan laughed a little.

“Apparently, Bandit can see that, too,” Xan said. “As your friend—”

Bandit turned toward him and let out a sharp meow.

“Sorry, as your friends,” Xan stressed the s at the end, “we’d like to help you if we can.”

“I… I…” She shook her head. “It is not I that requires assistance. It is Peri.”

“Peri? You mean Periwinkle?”

Xan knew the other Vegan, but not as well as Cyan. Peri was a lot better at piloting himself around. He was also one of the gruffer Vegans that Xan had met, but Peri and Cyan seemed to be close.

Cyan nodded. “He has been surveying the Sol system to find potential places to expand the habitations we are building.”

Xan’s throat tightened. It always did when he thought of how the Vegans and the Department of Homeworld Security on Earth were helping his people find new homes.

The Tau Centauran Assembly hadn’t stopped after destroying Sadr-4 and all of the colonies in his home system. They had destroyed so many Coalition colonies, and whenever Sadirians tried to set up new dome worlds or stations, the Tau Centauran Assembly was quick to attack those new targets.

As long as they could be close to Earth, they were safe. No one would dare stage an attack in the Vegans’ new home system.

“We appreciate your assistance so much,” Xan said.

Cyan reached over and patted his knee as Bandit turned toward Xan again and rubbed his cheek on Xan’s chin. The kitten let out a soft meow, and pawed at Xan’s face.

“Thank you.” Xan gently gripped Bandit’s paw and helped him settle back on Xan’s lap. “But let’s focus on your problem. What does Peri need?”

“I did not think you and Peri were friends,” Cyan said.

“That doesn’t matter. He’s your friend, and you want to help him, so I’m going to help you.”

She made a happy sibilant noise and leaned back, more of the color returning to her scales. “It is…not exactly something that your commander would approve of.”

Xan grinned. “All the better.”

Cyan let out a hissing laugh. “Then could you please take me to these coordinates? Once we are there, I should be able to pinpoint our destination more accurately.”

He checked the place she indicated. It was on Earth and the area would still be fully dark when they reached it, so he didn’t have to worry about breaking the non-appearance protocol in case the shuttle’s cloak failed.

Only members of the Department of Homeworld Security were supposed to know that aliens were real—and their new neighbors. Xan didn’t want to upset the Vegans or the Earthlings who had invited the Sadirians to live in the Sol system. If they changed their minds, Xan had no idea what would become of his people.

He turned back to his console and entered a course to take them to where Cyan had indicated. A ripple of white light flowed over the viewport, letting him know the cloak was active. He double-checked the readouts, then brought the planetary thrusters online.

The shuttle rose smoothly from the ground, gaining altitude quickly before turning in the direction of their destination. As soon as they were underway, he turned back to Cyan.

“Okay,” he said. “Now tell me the rest of it.”