I did not want an angry mate; I’d heard from my warriors that angry human females were indeed terrifying.
Chris narrowed his eyes at me. “You must be Krxare.”
“I am.”
We welcomed Clara’s brother into the shuttle and got some healing salve on his twisted ankle.
“Why are they so intent on you and Clara?” I asked.
“I don’t think they need me or Clara in particular. They just need one more person to meet their quota. Clara and I are prime targets because we have no other family and are not part of any special unions or clubs.” He made a wry face. “There’s no one to look for us. No one to look for Mark either, for that matter.”
Mark must be the human Clara had been traveling with. Jealousy prompted me to ask, “Who is Mark? And what is he to Clara?”
Chris looked surprised then dissolved into laughter. “Mark’s my roommate. We’ve been best friends since school. He’s like another brother to Clara.” He looked me up and down, trying to control his mirth. “Don’t worry. You don’t have competition.” He reined in his laughter and turned serious. “Now, are we going to rescue them or what? We need to stop them before they get to Utopia.”
“That is the human base in the desert.”
“That’s right, and I’m pretty sure it’s heavily guarded.”
There was only one road that led to the settlement, and I had Trsak send an automated drone to observe the river crossing. The cloaked machine was small and quick enough to be mistaken for a computer error in case of detection. If there was any activity there, we’d know immediately. The supersonic drone shot out from our shuttle and headed to its destination.
We’d need to ambush the transport before it reached the open plains leading to the desert. The river crossing was the ideal location, with large trees that would hide our activity. No amount of cloaking would convince the colony officials that the attack hadn’t been made by Kadrixans, otherwise.
My warriors and I hadn't had the chance to research what went on in that facility, having deemed the secret island base as the larger threat. Now I wished I'd at least sent a team. I didn’t even have reports of how it was guarded. If people had difficulty leaving, then surely there were guards.
Chris took a device out of his bag. It looked like one of their phones but had a heavy case around it. “Once we get a lock on the transport, I can track it with this. You won’t be able to track her chip while she’s inside. I’m good when it comes to comms. If they sent it in a message or said it in a call, or even said it while their phones were active, I can find it. That’s how I learned about the Utopia Project bonus.”
“There’s a shuttle turning onto the road now,” said Trsak, as he watched the feed from the drone, “but I can’t see inside the shuttle.”
“Tell the drone to monitor it and report any activity to us.” I called up a map of the area and placed a marker on the screen. “After dropping Clara’s brother at a safe spot, we’ll wait by the river crossing for the transport to arrive. Hopefully, we will know if she's inside by then.”
“I’ll come with you.” Chris put weight on his ankle, looking surprised at how quickly the salve acted.
“Clara will want you safe.” I couldn’t imagine her ire if I found her sole kin only to lose him afterward. I had faced many dangers, but Clara’s anger was one I did not want to stir.
“Clara is my sister. She got herself into this because she came looking for me. She rescued me from certain death. I owe her.” He turned to me. “And besides, you’ll need me to get that transport to drive itself off the monitored road and turn off all the cameras. That road and transport are technically part of the colony, and, according to a certain treaty, you’re not supposed to be anywhere near them.”
I huffed. Clara would be angry if I broke the treaty, and it was best not to until we had the weapons on the island neutralized.
I looked back at the human male, who stood firm on his convictions. Perhaps it would be a good thing for Clara to see her brother when we rescued her, provided she was actually in that transport.
“You may come along. Do not die. My Clara would never forgive me.”
Chris guffawed and pulled his pack onto his lap. It looked heavy.
“What’s in there?” I asked.
“I emptied my account and bought as much useful tech, condensed meals, and survival gear as I could. I removed all the tracking I know of.” He placed the weapon on the ledge in front of him. “Except for this. This belonged to the officer. They can track us with it.”
At the mention of useful tech, Trsak, who had been focused on the screen, perked up. He’d love to get his hands on more human tech. “I can scan it in case you missed anything. If you did, they won’t be able to track it as long as the items are inside our shuttle. We are safe.”
“That would be great.”
As our shuttle drove itself to the ambush location, I looked out the window and thought of Clara. I recalled when she’d taken the trip to the Vokiren tribe in the amphibious vehicle. Every scene had been a wondrous, new experience for her, and I couldn’t wait to show her many more.
Those officers better not have harmed a single hair on her body. If they did, they’d feel my wrath. I clenched my hands into fists at my sides. All we could do now was wait, and I hated waiting.
Chapter 26: Clara