down from the table, he peeped through his fingers at me.
‘Let’s run for it, Jarra.’ His eyebrows bounced suggestively. ‘Come with me, and let me show you my fighter.’
I instantly abandoned the remains of my cheese fluffle and stood up. We went out of the dining hall, with Fian trailing after us, and Drago headed towards his room.
‘I need to change into my impact suit.’ He grinned at me. ‘You can come in while I do that if you want. Betans don’t have a nudity taboo, or at least not as much of one as the officious Gammans would like.’
‘We’ll wait in the corridor,’ said Fian.
Drago sighed, vanished into his room for a couple of minutes, and reappeared wearing a Military impact suit with the hood down. He led the way outside to the nearest base internal portal. I watched, thrilled, as he selected the Shift 2 Attack area as our destination, and authorized us to accompany him.
We went through to where four fighters were parked in neat formation by a huge portal. I could see three more of the great portals nearby, each with a group of sleek, black fighters.
‘Zan! Totally, totally, zan!’ I just stood there for a moment, absorbing the sight.
‘You can sit inside my fighter, Jarra,’ said Drago. ‘You can run the pre-flights and take her up on hovers, but I’m not giving you the portal codes, so you aren’t taking her into orbit.’
When we reached the lead fighter with the gold flashes on its side, Drago tapped his wrist. I hadn’t even been able to see a line in the ebony beauty of the ship, but now the whole side unfolded and I eagerly climbed in. Drago squeezed in beside me, and gave a tormenting grin back at Fian before he closed the cockpit on us.
‘I’m afraid it’s a tight fit for two.’
I was staring at the controls. ‘Hovers. Flight. Attack grid. Oh zan!’
Drago laughed. ‘You’re killing my ego here, Jarra. I’m being outclassed on sex appeal by my own fighter.’
‘What?’ I asked. ‘Sorry, I was looking at the attack grid.’
He sighed. ‘Never mind.’
‘Can I run the pre-flights now?’
‘Go ahead.’
I triggered the pre-flights, the screens ran through the system checks, and the attack grid holos flickered into life around me in the final sequence.
‘Amaz!’ My eyes widened, and the holo grid echoed their movements as I looked to left and right. Bright red circles focused to target first the portal ahead of me, and then Fian, who was standing to one side of the group of fighters. I hastily turned my eyes away from him.
‘I can’t shoot by accident?’
‘No,’ said Drago. ‘You haven’t confirmed firing sequence, and anyway safeties automatically engage when you’re on the ground. You’d have to deliberately override.’
‘Good,’ I said breathlessly. ‘I’d hate to shoot up the place by mistake.’
I spent five more glorious minutes playing with the attack grid, and then ended pre-flight checks.
‘Hovers now?’
‘If you want,’ said Drago. ‘Watch it though. She’s not going to respond like a standard aircraft.’
I nodded, checked the hover controls were the same as the ones I’d seen before, and engaged lifts. The fighter lifted smoothly upwards, but when I tried moving forward I pulled a face.
‘She’s very sluggish.’
‘Flies like a rock in atmosphere.’ Drago sounded amused. ‘This isn’t what she’s designed for. She comes to life out in space. Sorry you can’t try that.’
‘Not as sorry as I am.’ I carefully landed the fighter again. ‘Thanks Drago, that was very special for me. I appreciate it.’
I hit the cockpit release and climbed out. Drago followed me, and Fian came hurrying over to join us. I waited until he was standing next to me before I turned to frown at Drago.
‘Now, Drago, I think it’s time you stopped using me to make Marlise jealous.’ I saw his forehead wrinkle. ‘And don’t try to lie your way out of this, because you can’t.’
Drago pulled a rueful face. ‘How did you find out?’
‘I knew Marlise didn’t approve of you paying attention to a kid like me, so at first I thought she was deliberately appearing whenever you were flirting with me. Then I realized it was actually the other way around. We’d be having a perfectly sensible conversation until Marlise walked into the room, but then you’d suddenly start paying me compliments and kissing my hand.’
He groaned. ‘How long have you known?’
‘A few days.’
Fian joined in the conversation. ‘Jarra wanted to see your fighter before she yelled at you.’
Drago laughed. ‘You’ve been playing me along, using me, Jarra.’
‘You started it, Drago.’
‘I was a desperate man,’ said Drago. ‘Marlise is my deputy, so Military regulations put me at a huge disadvantage. I can’t so much as kiss her without a legal contract. When she warned me not to flirt with Jarra, I thought that …’
‘I don’t care what’s going on between you and Captain Weldon,’ interrupted Fian. ‘I just want you to stay away from Jarra.’
‘You’ve no need to worry,’ said Drago. ‘I’d never have flirted with her if there was the remotest risk of her falling for me. It’s perfectly obvious from the way Jarra looks at you that she isn’t interested in me or anyone else.’
He grinned and saluted. ‘Major Jarra Tell Morrath, you have my Military Oath that I will behave towards you with perfect propriety in future. I formally request a truce.’
I glanced at Fian.
‘All right,’ he agreed. ‘On condition I get to hit Drago at least once. I know exactly where I’m going to hit him as well!’
11
The day the Military first detected the sphere was officially designated Day Zero. We were now on Day Twelve, and the threat assessment from Commander Mason Leveque ticked up a little higher with each failed attempt to contact the sphere. It was now an ominous 74 per cent.
I normally slept solidly through every night, but now I would wake in the early hours, lie listening to Fian’s quiet breathing, and thank the deity that I wasn’t Colonel Torrek. I could only begin to imagine the strain of being in command of something like this, and the temptation to end the suspense by ordering an attack. Day after day, the Colonel remained an example of calm, confident and patient leadership. Respect!
Today, I was distracted from thoughts of aliens by something purely personal. I’d made a promise, and it was time to honour it. Fian and I stood at the desk in the parcel room, giving handprints to acknowledge the receipt of two tiny boxes. The young lieutenant behind the desk looked amused by Fian’s totally powered expression.
‘Something important, sir?’ he asked.
‘Our rings,’ said Fian, pride and joy just bubbling out of him.
I bravely smiled. We’d got our rings, and somehow I was going to force myself to put mine on my finger. Fian was so happy about this that I couldn’t let him down.
‘Congratulations and mutual joy,’ said the lieutenant.
‘Thank you,’ said Fian, and he turned to kiss me.
‘Chimera shred you,’ said a voice from behind us. ‘Isn’t it enough to have sex with the ape in private, must you kiss the thing in public as well?’
Fian whirled to face the owner of the voice. ‘Shut your mouth!’
‘I outrank you, Captain,’ said the voice. ‘You’ll moderate your tone, and address me as “sir”.’
