* * *
Miko, crouching in painful posture, saw a flash of amber light as several forms emerged from the U-shaped amalgamator along the far wall of the interrogation chamber. Princeps Jring himself hunched forward, with gold bands on his pincer arms and hind legs. Four locust guards scuttled in tow, gripping lumo blasters. Nrog gave them a hasty greeting.
Miko’s spirits sank to new lows as the direness of his plight hit home. A humid, slightly rank odor permeated his nostrils in the maroon murk, courtesy of the mossy dark brown plant stuff caking the walls, somewhat bioluminescent. The Zikri went in for creepy. Star and Usk crouched at his side, damp, blooded, wild-eyed, but with no less fear and resignation. Five Mentera tanks loomed to the side…green-glowing aquariums filled with characteristic eerie green waters, three empty, one containing a husky, gape-eyed Daulk, and another with some horned, bat-like insect and three crab-like creatures with jellyfish streamers. The significance of three ‘empties’ was not lost on Miko.
On a signal from Nrog, guards from both races stepped forth to affix circuits, small coin-sized translator units, to the captives’ bodies: one on Usk’s antenna, one each behind Star’s and Miko’s ears.
“The invasion must proceed as planned,” Nrog told Jring. “These spies have somehow alerted NOA. I feel it in my motilators. We must not lose our advantage, Jring. If we wait too long, our window of surprise will be lost.”
“Agreed,” chirped Jring, “yet a small delay in conducting some security checks will not cost us, Nrog. I see no NOA on the horizon, or any visible threat.”
Nrog spurt out an angry chitter. “For now! Hostiles may light-drive in at any moment. There may be more of these spies about.” He turned to face the prisoners. “Who else is with you?” He shuttled closer. “Answer! What other ships are working in collusion?”
Miko maintained a grim, tight-lipped silence. While the blood pounded in his ears, Usk and Star stared at the luminous tanks, though Miko could see the shiver run through Star’s slender shoulders and almost palpably hear the beat of her heart.
Jring turned with brisk energy to his chitinous aide. “Kerut! Analyze all recordings between Mentera vessels prior to Quenrix. Start with the ships from Kraetoria.”
“Aye, Princeps.” The aide, a squat, heavy-plated locust in tight dark-green protective garb, moved aside to spew chitters into a coin-sized communicator pinned to his antenna.
Jring’s piercing red eyes bored into Usk. “It distresses me that one of my own kind is behind this fiasco, Nrog. Give the rebel to me. The culprit will be probed and sentenced to our tanks for intravenous feeding. Likely for workers on one of our space stations. Notice the rebel has the telltale red band on his head. A common mark of a deviant or convicted felon.”
“Interesting,” mused Nrog, grazing a tentacle tip across his prune-wrinkled mouth. He stared down at the traitorous crouching insect. “What have you to say for yourself?”
“I was wrongfully accused.” Defiance flashed across Usk’s eyes.
Jring scowled. “Your crimes of treason and murder trump any crimes here, real or feigned.”
Usk made no comment. He stared with a hollow expression.
“Give me five minutes with this traitor.” Jring clacked his pincers. “Our interrogators will make putty of him.”
Nrog flicked out a motilator. “No. He’s my captive, Jring, and on my ship. Your brutal means will have to wait—I’ll have Basilursk, my torturer, have a go at him.”
Nrog’s lead torturer gave a raspy acknowledgement. A ripple of excitement undulated through the squid’s upper body.
Jring seethed, but he held his pride in check and decided not to push the issue.
“Before you all die,” Nrog said to the prisoners, “tell me, what is this blue crate you carry with you? It glimmers with an unwholesome glow.” Nrog’s unsettling gaze drifted on to Miko.
Miko hesitated. His eyes flicked to the blue box. The device sat guarded by two of Nrog’s squids. Usk glanced about with nervous apprehension. Star whimpered in her space boots.
“Answer the question—or face my torturers!”
“I believe it is the vessel of the Masters,” Miko said.
“Ah, the Masters,” parroted Nrog with contempt. “I’ve heard of this creature. Some entity that haunts our ancient tunnels…what a lab assistant on Kraetoria was babbling about before he was murdered by some test subject.”
“Apparently a Zikri,” Jring interrupted. “The unusually large specimen who still prowls your lab tunnels, according to my intel.”
“Maybe.” Nrog glared in silent acknowledgement.
Miko licked his lips. Such a creature could only be Audra.
“Bring forth this ‘Master’, if you please,” instructed Nrog.
Jring scuttled forward. “Take care, Nrog. The box could be some bio-viral weapon or trap.”
“Relax. Our scanners have detected no explosives or organics. Lumo circuits of some sort, maybe some other material, yet wholly identifiable.”
Jring stirred in unease.
Nrog waved Miko on toward the crate. “The invasion will be delayed until we learn what this spy mission was…who sent them and what this device is.”
Jring chirruped. “That’s self-evident. They are spies of NOA. The device came from Kraetoria, our mother world. It is none other than some old lab equipment that my troops discovered and packed in a ship for further study under my lieutenant’s orders.”
Nrog rippled his upper motilators in doubt. “None of this makes any sense, Jring. What were the intruders doing on Kraetoria? Why would NOA send three amateur saboteurs, disparate picks in my opinion, into our remote base? This box is a weapon of some sort.” He rounded on Miko. “Speak up, human!”
Miko clenched his fists and shook his head. Even if he were to tell Nrog the truth, these creatures would kill him. Death was the only outcome and only moments away.
Nrog tipped his motilators forward and slapped Miko toward the box. “Move! Activate the device.”
“I know not—”
Nrog cast a suggestive leer at his torturer.
