Ross sat up a little straighter and stared back at the Juirean. “I am Kyle Ross,” he stated with authority in his voice, “and the more appropriate question should be, what is the Klin association with us.”
Ross’s bombastic attitude seemed out of place to Riyad. There were so many contradictions in Ross’s entire demeanor that Riyad was just as anxious to hear the results of the interrogation as was the Juirean. Someone around here — either these odd Humans or the mysterious Klin — knew the location of Earth. And that was all Riyad was ultimately interested in.
The Juirean recoiled slightly at Ross’s statement. “What do you mean? You are using the technology of the Klin and harboring their kind. I will get this information out of you — or from one of your fellow beings-”
“We are harboring no one.” Ross interrupted. “We have used the Klin for our purposes and have extracted all the information we need from them. They resisted at first, but what few of them who were left have scattered after the attack. They are of no further use to us, or to anyone else.”
The Juirean Commander was speechless for a moment as he stared at Ross. Riyad was stunned as well. Finally the Juirean regained his voice. “You cannot be serious. You make it sound as if you are the masters and the Klin are the servants.”
Ross nodded. “That’s right. We Humans are the true force in the galaxy, as you will soon learn.”
“No, Human, Juireans are the superior force, and have been for thousands of years. You are just an insignificant race using the technology of a near-extinct civilization.”
Ross just laughed. “So you think the Klin provided us with all the technology and weapons that allowed us to nearly destroy your fleet? I can say that the Klin have helped augment our ships and weapons. But it was we who manned the ships and guided the weapons.”
“And it was you and your kind who were defeated in the battle.”
“This is just the first of many such battles. Once our forces on Earth are ready, we will lash out at your kind with no mercy.”
Riyad could not believe his ears! What the hell was Ross talking about? Unless things had changed drastically on Earth in the past seven years, his homeworld was nowhere near capable of competing against the Juirean war machine. And from his brief conversation with Adam Cain, nothing much had changed on Earth since he’d been taken. Unless, of course, an entire underground operation was taking place on Earth, preparing for the coming battle…
“Where are your other bases!” Siegor demanded as he nodded at the guard next to Ross again. And once again the butt of the rifle crashed into Ross’s temple. This time Ross simply shook it off.
“There are no other bases, and only a handful of the Klin still exist. And they are under our control. We were the forward base, keeping an eye on your activities.”
“Then where is this planet Earth of yours? You will tell me, now!”
Riyad perked up. This could be it “I will die before I will tell you, Juirean!”
Shit!
Siegor pushed back from the table and stood. “You — or your other Humans — will tell us. I guarantee it. As we peel away your skin and pluck out your eyes, you will talk! You will know more pain than you have ever imagined, and each of you will watch the others die, knowing that they will soon be experiencing the some agony. Believe me when I say, one of you will talk.”
The Siegor turned to leave the room, but at the doorway he turned back to Ross. “And once we have the location of your precious homeworld, you will all know the wrath and power of the Juirean race. We have exterminated races before. We can certainly do it again!”
Riyad and Ross were returned to the holding cell, and once there, Ross rejoined his group without saying a word to Riyad. As a matter of fact, none of the other men in the room even approached Ross to ask him what had happened, and Ross did not tell. The entire scene was so surreal.
Riyad went into the grooming station and splashed water on his face, and examined the swollen red mark on his forehead from the butt of the alien’s rifle. His head hurt, but it was nothing he couldn’t handle. Ross, on the other hand, had taken two blows to the head, and Riyad was confused with Ross’s reaction to both. With the first one he appeared to overreact; the second, he simply ignored.
Ross eventually entered the room and began to tend to his wounds as well. He ignored Riyad, who quickly backed away from the sink and glared at the younger Human.
“What the fuck was that all about?”
Ross ignored him, as he dabbed away the small amount of blood on his temple.
Riyad took a step toward Ross and grabbed his arm, spinning him around to face him. But before Riyad knew it, three other men grabbed him from behind and threw him into the main room. Then it all became a blur, as no telling how many of the Humans joined in to pummel Riyad viciously, smashing him in the face and kicking his ribs. After a few moments, the blows all began to run together, and he could no longer feel them. His vision blurred and his ears rang. Then slowly, his smoky vision began to collapse in on itself, and the welcoming darkness of unconsciousness came to Riyad Tarazi.
Siegor had linked the monitor in the holding cell with the transmission to Lord Yan’wal, allowing the Overlord to view the beating of the dark-haired Human in real time. Yan’wal was confused. Why would the Humans attack another of their kind so viciously? And this was the Human who had been aboard the Klin — or was it a Human — starship.
Yan’wal was still trying to digest the information from the first interrogation, and whether or not he had his entire premise turned upside down. Were the Humans really the masterminds of this entire conspiracy against The Expansion? And if that were the case, then maybe this other Human, this Riyad Tarazi, might have information that the others did not want him to reveal?
He made up his mind: He would segregate this Human from the others The Senior Overlord was distracted by what he saw on the monitor. Without a word, all thirteen of the other Humans had formed a cluster in the center of the room, closed their eyes and turned their heads to the ceiling. Then in unison, they reached behind their right ears and removed what appeared to be clear strips of tape about ten centimeters long. And then they all placed the strips on their tongues.
Almost instantly, the creatures began to convulse violently, as froth began to spit from their mouths, and they gasped for breath. Seconds later, they all collapsed in a heap in the center of the room, even before Siegor could reach the comm unit to alert the guards. Yan’wal watched as panicked sentries rushed into the room and descended on the now-still pile of Human flesh.
It was too late.
Yan’wal tightened his jaw and let out an angry sigh. The enigmatic Humans were dead, and along with them their secrets and those of the Klin Then a guard shouted into his comm unit. One of the Humans was still alive! Siegor was on the link instantly. After a moment, he turned to the small screen on his desk and addressed the Overlord. “It’s just the pirate, My Lord, not one of the others.”
A cloud of disappointment descended on Yan’wal. This particular Human was outside the circle of the others. He was not privy to all their knowledge, he was sure. And yet there was still a link between them, somewhere. Within the well-trained and disciplined mind of the Senior Overlord, a plan began to take seed. Within seconds he had made up his mind.
“Commander,” he said to Siegor, “here is what I want you to do…”
Chapter Fourteen
Zoluoff Ransin was Holaconese. The Sector 7 planet was one of the major commercial centers of The Expansion, located seven hundred light years on the far side of the Core from Juir. It boasted a population of over four billion natives, not including the billion or so off-worlders who had settled on the planet. Holacon was cosmopolitan and progressive, which made Ransin’s current assignment in The Fringe Worlds that much more disappointing.