Soros (Descendants of Doom Book 3), page 4
I thought about how Nerix often bickered with me and the contrast to how soft he was around Star. Everyone became soft around her. It made me think that Nerix might be right when he said that I was annoying and difficult. It would explain why Soros had lost interest in me.
With a knot in my stomach, I followed the group into the base. While observing the place and trying my best not to stare at the odd aliens working there, I did as I was told and let them scan me for diseases like everyone else.
Lios and Soros were communicating with the staff about incoming landings the past days, explaining about Ko’roz. Star was taken aside for medical examinations and Nerix went with her, which shouldn’t have surprised me.
The rest of us were led to a waiting area. The three small caves were connected like a clover. Except for built-in benches and stone walls there was nothing in the caves. Everyone went into one cave, but I deliberately chose to go into a cave by myself to get time to think. It didn’t take long before Elan and Ayedin came to sit on each side of me. Compared to the other men in the crew, Elan and Ayedin were gentle in the way they carried themselves.
Ayedin had pretty facial features with long eyelashes, and he smiled at me in a playful way. “Elan and I wanted to ask you something.”
“Go ahead,” I encouraged him.
“Well, we thought that you and Nerix might be helping each other since you sleep in the same room, but now that he’s healing from his injury, we figured that he might not be able to satisfy your needs.”
I looked from Ayedin to Elan and back again. They were both smiling at me with interest in their eyes.
“We Scilms are known to be amazing lovers. Our focus would be on your pleasure.”
“Ehm…” Their offer took me by surprise, but it also came at a good time since I was contemplating if I was truly a difficult woman like Nerix had told Star. “You want to have sex with me?”
They nodded enthusiastically.
“At the same time… or separately?” I wasn’t sure why I even entertained the idea of a threesome with them except for the attention, which felt nice.
Elan had beautiful lips and a sharp jawline and both men were handsome. Why couldn’t I be one of those women who indulged in sexual adventures without any strings attached?
“That’s entirely up to you. We would just love to spoil you with our attention.”
Lifting my hand to cup Ayedin’s face, I looked into his eyes. “Rumor has it that I’m the most annoying and difficult woman in the world. Nerix thinks so. Maybe it’s better if you stay away from me.”
Ayedin kept smiling. “That’s okay. I don’t think Nerix and I appreciate the same qualities in women.”
“No? What do you appreciate then?”
He swallowed and bit down his lower lip before he answered. “I like women who take what they want.”
The submissive expression in his eyes made me squeeze his chin harder and harden my tone. “You like to be dominated, don’t you, Ayedin?”
“Yes.” His answer was breathy. “I love it. I would make it my personal mission to serve you as my mistress.”
I let go of him and slowly turned my attention to Elan. “And what about you? Are you a pleaser too?”
He gave me a cheeky grin. “I can be whatever you want me to be. We Scilms just love sex.”
I did too, but for me it had to be with the right person and that complicated things.
“I wish I could,” I said and meant it. “I’m sure you two would be fun to play with. Unfortunately, I’m in love with someone and I can’t just sleep with other men.”
“Are you sure? You seem sad and tense. Maybe we could help you feel better.”
I gave them both a smile. “Thank you for your kind offer. It means a lot to me.”
Elan took my hand and placed a kiss on my wrist. “I hope the man you’re in love with knows how lucky he is.”
My reply came in a dry tone. “I wish, but no.”
Only then did I notice that Lios and Soros were standing in the opening to the room watching us.
Ayedin and Elan got up and joined the rest of the crew while I tagged behind. Soros’ gaze was on me with a hard glance and just when I was about to pass him, he pulled at my wrist and moved me back into the cave.
“What is going on?”
I was taken off guard by Soros’ question and went into defense mode. “Let go of my hand.”
He didn’t hear me but hissed low. “Must you be with every man on the ship just to taunt me?”
My eyes narrowed as I hissed back. “Did you think you could ignore me for four years and still have a claim on me?”
“You said I was special,” Soros reminded me with an intense glance in his large brown eyes.
“That was before I knew how little our time together meant to you.”
“To me?” He scoffed and squinted his eyes, just about to continue, when Lios came back.
“Are you two coming?”
“Yes.” My heart was pounding in my chest like a war drum, and I gave Soros a defiant look of contempt. “We were done anyway.”
“The shuttle is waiting.” Lios studied me closely when I walked past him. I didn’t want him to feel sorry for me, and increased my pace.
“Tania, you’re taking the first group to London.”
“London?” I turned and stared at Lios. “London, England?”
“Yes. According to the staff, they have narrowed down two arrivals to Earth, these past days, that could look suspicious. One is in England. Zobran will be the leader of your group. I’m waiting for Nerix and Star and then we’ll go to New York where there’s another arrival.”
“What about Star?” I asked. “I promised her that I would be there for her when we got to Earth.”
Soros still looked pissed when he answered, “Don’t worry. Star is my roommate and I’ll take care of her. Don’t forget that I stayed on Earth for nine months and know how to handle myself here.”
I glared at Soros. “You and Nerix are both eager to take care of her, but I made Star a promise and I’m not leaving her when she’s already overwhelmed.”
Lios’ eyes darted between us. “You two seem very tense. Is there some conflict that needs resolution?”
“We’re fine,” we said in unison as I raised my chin.
Lios shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “I don’t have time for this right now. We have a murderer to find, and I need you two to cooperate.”
“I don’t know much about London,” I said, feeling frustrated that I was being sent to Europe where I wasn’t a local expert.”
“You’re an expert on humans. The others can help with area maps and other languages if necessary. They can access the language archive. You’ll be fine.”
“They speak English in London. That’s not the problem.” My patience was running out and I felt like screaming.
“She’s all set.” The sound of Nerix’s voice made me pivot to see him and Star come walking toward us.
“Good. We’re having a bit of a discussion. Tania wants to stay with Star as she made her a promise.”
“And I said that I’ll take care of you,” Soros said, speaking directly to Star.
Star dipped her head a little like a tortoise sensing trouble. Nerix instantly stepped a little closer to her.
“I’m splitting the team into two groups with Zobran leading the group that is going to London. The other will be going to New York. Which group do you want to go with?”
Star’s gaze darted between me and Nerix as if waiting for one of us to tell her what to do.
“Sweetie.” I walked to stand in front of her. Pushing a lock of her honey blonde hair behind her ear, I asked softly, “Who do you feel safest with?”
It was like a stab to my heart when her gaze fell on Soros and then Nerix, only to land on me last.
“It’s fine. Star doesn’t want to make that decision so I’m making it as the captain,” Lios said. “We’re supposed to be ten soldiers on the Great Defender, but right now we’re down to seven crew members and you three.” He nodded toward Soros, Star, and me. “I’m splitting us into two groups. You civilians are coming with me and Nerix to New York and the rest will go to London.”
“You can’t let five aliens go to London without a local agent to assist them,” I insisted. “Let me talk to K’rem. I’m sure there’s someone he can connect them with.”
“There’s no need. I am submitting the request as we speak.”
Elan came walking from the docking area. “The first shuttle is ready for take-off and the other should arrive soon.”
Plotton, Imiros, Zobran, Ayedin, and Elan all got aboard the shuttle, which looked like the one I had seen Soros and Malliko arrive in when I picked them up at base thirty-seven.
“The rest of us will go with the next shuttle to New York,” Lios told us.
Taking Star’s hand, I raised my eyebrows. “Prepare to have your senses bombarded.”
“Will I be alright?” she asked and turned the ring on her finger.
“Think of it as an adventure,” I said at the same time that Nerix told her not to worry. “We’re not leaving you alone and no one will get close enough to hurt you.”
I wanted Star to have a wonderful experience on Earth and I worried that New York would overwhelm her. “Hopefully, we’ll find Ko’roz fast,” I said with a stiff smile because finding one person in New York sounded impossible and we couldn’t even be sure he was in that city… or on Earth.
CHAPTER 6
New York
Soros
It was hard for me to focus on my work when Tania was around. Normally, I was skilled at figuring people out but she was sending so many mixed signals that I was exhausted from trying to catch up.
She didn’t like me and treated me with disgust. If she could, she would forget I ever existed. So why was she upset that I slept in Star’s room?
I would like to think it was due to her having lingering feelings for me and potentially feeling jealousy. But another thought that I had initially dismissed was grinding on my nerves and made me prickly. What if Tania had regretted how intimate we were for all those months? What if she felt coerced and blamed me for taking advantage of her? Could it be that she feared I might actually hurt Star? The very idea was insulting.
“Is that truly the pilot?” Star whispered to Tania when we were on the shuttle. They both sat staring at the Tomq-Kvi floating in the air.
“I think so. I’ve never seen anything like it. It reminds me of a jellyfish.”
“Fish?” Nerix wrinkled his forehead. “According to the language archive, fish live in water. I’m seeing images of these creatures on the demonstration.”
“You see images of fish?” Star gaped. “I only get the phonetic words. Are there different versions of the language archive?”
With a gentle tone, Lios suggested, “You’re working with the basic version, but the stronger your mental connection, the easier you can look at related material such as images, sayings, definitions, synonyms and much more.”
Her shoulders slumped as Star said, “I don’t have access to any of that.”
“Maybe your abilities can grow with practice,” Nerix comforted her. “At least you can express yourself. There are plenty of species without the ability to use verbal language at all.” He looked up. “Like the Tomq-Kvi.”
Having studied different species, I offered my insights. “Tomq-Kvis are a highly intelligent sentient species.”
“Does it even have eyes?” Star whispered and kept her eyes on the floating being.
“It has more eyes than us, but it operates the shuttle through a mental connection, just like all other pilots.”
“What’s the plan?” Tania asked. “How are we getting to New York? We can’t just land in a normal airport with an alien plane.”
Lios answered, “Their initial plan was to take us to Canada and have us drive down to New York, but Soros contacted one of his friends here who has connections and now we’re landing at a location closer. They’re setting everything up for us.”
“Who is your contact person?” Tania asked me.
“That’s confidential,” I informed her in a grumpy tone.
“I’m an agent. You can trust me,” Tania said with a facial expression that told me she felt humiliated by my doubt in her ability to keep secret information.
“It’s one of the humans I worked with when I was last here. At that time, he was the President of the United States.”
Tania’s mouth dropped open. “You’re kidding.”
“We’re here to deal with a threat and he’s more than willing to help.”
“But how do you even communicate with him?” Tania’s eyes widened. “Wait, are you saying that he’s alien and knows telepathy?”
“Of course not. The leader at base four is serving as a translator right now,” I explained reluctantly.
“You mean that you talk to the base leader through telepathy, and he calls the former president on his phone?”
“Maybe that’s how it’s done. I’m not sure how the base leader communicates with the human, but he’s passing on instructions right now.”
Lios chipped in. “We’re being directed to a landing site on a private property outside the city. A helicopter will be there to pick us up and take us downtown. We’re meeting a group of our contact persons to update them on the situation.” Leaning over Nerix, Lios asked Star, “Are you okay?”
“Yes.” Her answer was timid, and it was clear to see that she was nervous as Lios continued to update our group.
“It’s already late and we’re sleeping in New York tonight. Tania, while we’re meeting with our contacts, you’re getting Star situated at the accommodation we’ve been given.”
“Where are we staying?” Tania asked.
“They gave us the offer of being hosted privately or at a hotel. I chose hotel because private hosting tends to involve socializing, which is time consuming.”
“Maybe I should stay with the women,” Nerix suggested.
Lios rejected that idea. “Earth isn’t Markatoria and Tania knows how to handle herself and take care of Star.”
“It’s still an unknown planet to the rest of us and in case something happens they shouldn’t be left unprotected.”
“We’ll be fine,” Tania assured Nerix dismissively and it made me suspect that they weren’t doing great as a couple.
Once we reached New York and separated into two black town cars, Nerix didn’t look happy. As the women drove off, he muttered to Lios, “That wasn’t a good call. If anything happens to them it’s on you.”
Arching his eyebrows, Lios warned telepathically, “Don’t go there, Nerix. They aren’t children and Tania is a competent and resourceful agent on Earth. You always get overprotective and suffocate women. And there’s no need to be verbal now that it’s just us three.”
Narrowing his eyes, Nerix responded in the same way. “I wish I had been more overprotective with Ziba and Keindra. Maybe then they would still be alive.”
It was as if the temperature dropped, and so I changed the subject before the confrontation between Nerix and Lios escalated further.
“Can we focus on Ko’roz for a moment? I’ve looked through everything I could find on him and there are some important character traits that might help us in our search.”
Lios seemed relieved for my bringing us back on track. He was quick to ask, “What are those traits?”
“Ko’roz is flamboyant and likes an audience that he can impress with his abundant lifestyle. On Markatoria he would exhibit his wealth in the most vulgar way and that’s why I argued that he’ll be drawn towards larger cities. His thought is that he can hide better among a large population of people. That might be true, but this Malbreean has gotten away with a lot of shit his entire life. He’s not used to his actions having negative consequences, because he’s been rich in a corrupt society where he could pay officials off. I predict that he’ll quickly succumb to his need to show off. Right now, he might be careful while he settles in, but my guess is that he thinks he’s safe on Earth because he’s convinced that coming here was an unpredictable move from his side.”
“It was,” Lios said. “I would have never thought of Earth and I’m still skeptical that he’s here.”
“He’s here,” I said although I couldn’t be sure. “Ko’roz’s biggest weakness is that he considers himself to be much smarter than everyone else. My colleagues on Tandaquon are backtracking his moves while he was there. If we can figure out where he stayed and who he worked with to change his identity, then we can get answers to where he might have gone on Earth.”
We kept talking about Ko’roz until the car stopped in front of a townhouse. I had been to a place similar to this while I worked on Earth. That place had been in London, and it had been the home of the British Prime Minister. This place had a staircase leading up to a shiny black door, which was opened as we approached.
Once inside, we met with two stern-looking men and one woman. Lios, Nerix, and I sat at one end of the table and the humans sat at the other.
The woman addressed us first. She was old with a hard expression in her small eyes, which sat close above her beaky nose. “We are members of the US Congress and serving on the committee for alien contact. It’s a secret committee that requires the highest level of security clearance. We are all handpicked for the great responsibility. There are currently five of us, but given the short notice, only we three were able to attend tonight.”
Nerix told us telepathically that he didn’t care for her attitude, but his body language already said as much.
Lios answered her, “We appreciate you showing up on such short notice. It is our hope that we can work together to quickly eliminate the threat to your society and planet.” Lios continued to inform them about our suspicion that Ko’roz might be hiding on Earth. “We’re confident that while he was on Tandaquon, he altered his identity and potentially his looks.”
