She hesitated, smiling as she looked them up and down individually, inspecting her new soldiers, seeing their combat tunics and breeches were almost immaculate, dark bubbled shoulder armour edged in red, their newly added dull resin shin and thigh protectors complimented with additional arm protection, the newly produced and enhanced standard uniform of the amalgamated Trevakian and human unit.
The smile widened to a grin as she glimpsed David Bland’s hand running across the wall behind them in fascination, the captain clearing her throat, ‘Once this gathering is completed, we will have a briefing in the mess hall. Apparently we are slowing at the outskirts of your human universe…your planet Earth is only a few hours away from our ships. We will gain a full insight into the situation there and then progress further…you are nearly home.’
Captain Dugachard’s eyes stared into the faces of each one of the three human subordinates and companions, seeing Debra and Shino’s emotional response, Riaz’s eyes straining in resolute determination as he whispered slowly under his breath, ‘Now we will finally see what they have done…’
Shino looked up at her colleague in surprise, wiping a tear from her eye as she grasped his elbow reassuringly, ‘Riaz, we are home…surely…are you not happy to be back?’
The young asian male forced a smile, winking cheekily at the captain to distract them from his darkening mood, his voice rising slightly in a distracting lie, ‘Yes…can’t wait to wash the BMW and get out onto the M25 motorway…go through the gears…’
The Trevakian nodded, noticing Debra stare at the young male with suspicion, her voice lowered as more figures stepped through the curtains, ‘If you want to go home as soon as we land…we can arrange a suitable transport drop if the situation permits…there are very few of you and it’s the least we can do.’
Riaz shook his head immediately, an arm sweeping round Shino’s shoulder armour as her eyes widened in uncomfortable confusion, the grip tightening fondly, ‘I will follow orders…whatever has to be done first…’
More uniformed figures stepped through the curtains, the group turning to look as Jozefina Kapralova roamed into view with Tregan behind, several of the forward personnel high ranking Trevakian officers. The Heathrow supervisor’s eyes fixed on the small group as she approached, extending her arms as Debra reached for her, the two managers hugging, Riaz averting his eyes as he glimpsed a tearful Jozefina. Shino concealed a grin as she glimpsed Debra Hardie’s hand briefly touch Tregan’s, instinctively turning her head to stare at the marble styled tiles below.
A low musical tribute began to sound before the assembled figures as they all turned to face further deep red curtains ahead, the silver snarling Leopard’s face gradually splitting in two as the thick shroud parted slowly. The lights above dimmed as a forward silver lectern appeared, the admiral of the ship stood formally behind it in a sharply pressed Trevakian fleet uniform, his head bowed as the curtains moved further.
Chrome handled and lidded coffins roaming into view in lines to either side, each supported on low mechanical legs, above and behind, rectangular viewing windows looking out into the darkness beyond, sparkling stars in the distance, space dust sweeping past as the large vessel surged onwards. The assembled crowd stared up at the large portrait between the windows and behind the admiral, two meticulously painted crouched figures facing the audience, both staring forward in determination and brandishing assault rifles. One was of a Trevakian camouflaged marine, the other a human soldier in the newly issued uniform, Riaz’s eyes widening as his heart rate rose in loyal excitement. Beneath the two figures, the bold gold outlined words were in extreme, almost bloodlike red against a black glittering wall, ‘Together our races combine…onwards to Victory!’ and underneath, Riaz’s chest swelling in pride and determination in response, ‘Our time together is now!’
Shino shuddered against him, her whisper not going unheard, ‘My god…we are now as one…’ Debra drew a sharp breath, her arms around Jozefina as the other duty manager sobbed uncontrollably, glimpsing the second coffin to the right of the lectern, small names in gold writing on the end of each casket, the one her tearful eyes rested upon seeming to stand out from the others, the name significant, ‘Rees’ and underneath ‘Highly Decorated’.
The admiral cleared his throat, a lone light above rising in intensity as he stepped up to the lectern in the dark blue fleet uniform, the markings of numerous medals across his right chest. Glancing across the fifty or so figures, he noticed David Bland briefly, the airport manager’s head dropping after recognising each of the etched names on the end of the coffins, three figures near the Heathrow employee seeming equally as distressed and straining to suppress their emotions. His eyes eventually rested on a muscular asian soldier, the defined features staring forwards in ultimate determination as the admiral smiled faintly.
Coughing slightly, the admiral rested his hands of the sides of the silver presentation platform, his voice rising, ‘We have come to show our respect for the fallen…a new ally that has paid dearly for their ultimate loyalty to our empire. These innocent sacrifices stand against a vicious enemy that they had no experience of…all fought bravely and courageously against overwhelming odds before ultimately falling as a result of their wounds received on the field of battle.’ The admiral drew breath, briefly glancing across the room once more, ‘These initial volunteers paid heavily for their eagerness and unflinching willingness to stubbornly resist with over three hundred other humans buried on our distant planet, Zaxon B.’
He
