That brought his smile back, though it failed to hide the concern in his eyes. “Just be careful, my little conqueror.”
“You be careful, too.” She kissed his tempting lips again, then leaned back and pointed to the others. “All of you. I mean it. Anyone who gets hurt will suffer a serious ass-kicking as soon as you recover.”
They laughed.
It didn’t take them long to reach the other side of the moon. As expected, it was dark. Dim light reflected from sister moons kept it from being pitch black, but most humans would still have to squint to make out structures. Simone, on the other hand, had no difficulty noticing the difference in topography with her enhanced vision. Whereas the other side of the moon was relatively flat and streaked with crevices, this side bore tall mountains locked in ice. Each jagged peak reached for the sky in disjointed chunks she found fascinating and beautiful.
Spotting something nestled at the base of the mountain range, she leaned forward. “Is that it?”
A long minute passed, perhaps because the others didn’t have her sharper vision.
“Isolate it,” Janwar ordered.
A clear viewscreen descended from the ceiling and projected the same image they’d spied through the windshield. Then the camera or scanner zoomed in.
“Enhance visual,” Janwar murmured when it remained too dark for them to see clearly.
Elchan tapped commands into his console.
The image brightened without the graininess her most recent Second back on Earth had grumbled about whenever he tried to enhance dark photos.
Simone hated to admit it, but the Gathendiens had done a fantastic job creating a facility that would blend in perfectly with the ice. Backed up to the mountainside—perhaps even carved out of it—lay a complex web of structures partnered with a cave that she suspected was an aircraft hangar due to the flat, shuttered entrance.
She studied the interconnected buildings.
It looked as if the Gathendiens had either coated the whole place with ice or let nature do it for them. Nothing metal or bearing a different color from the moon stood out anywhere. The buildings may have begun as boxy shapes but now had taken on the same chunky uneven surface as the mountain behind them and blended seamlessly with the terrain. Anyone flying past on their way to Promeii 7 wouldn’t notice a thing and assume the moon was a frozen, barren wasteland.
But Simone could see it. And one thing immediately stood out. “That’s awful big for a research facility.” Her gaze roved each structure, taking in every icy detail.
Janwar slowly shook his head. “That isn’t your average research facility. That cave masks a hangar large enough to accommodate multiple craft.”
Elchan nodded. “And I’m picking up a lot of life forms.”
“How many?” Simone asked, anxiety creeping in. She really wanted this to be a quick and easy mission that would result in no serious injuries or loss of life. These men were doing this for her. For her friends. They might claim it was for whatever monetary reward the Lasaran royal family would pay them for finding Earthlings, Lasarans, or Yona, but that was bullshit.
Elchan stared at his screen. “More life forms than you would find on a standard military base.” He glanced at Janwar. “At least two war-time contingents.”
Janwar swore. “We may have just found one of their primary research and development bases.”
Simone’s gaze swept the men, then returned to Janwar. “Well, whatever they’re researching and developing here must be pretty damn important if they have that many soldiers guarding it.”
He nodded. “Scientists in the Gathendiens’ viral research division are very competitive and often set up private, isolated labs they can work in without worrying about other scientists purloining their data. All covet the emperor’s favor, so stealing and capitalizing on the work of others is a common issue. But this…” He motioned to the icy structures beneath them. “This goes far beyond that. Elchan, scan that hangar and see if you can tell us what’s inside it.”
Elchan went to work, tapping away and studying his screen. “Thirty fighter craft, a dozen of the larger troop transports, and… twenty ground combat vehicles.”
“Merde,” Simone whispered.
Janwar nodded, his face grim. “This is definitely one of their military’s research and development bases.”
“Which means…?” she prompted.
“Viral research isn’t all they’re conducting here. They’re also refining and developing weaponry, ammunition, and combat-related craft.”
She studied the base. “So in addition to having a shit-load of soldiers, they may also have advanced weaponry you’ve never encountered before?”
“Essentially.”
This was worse than they’d anticipated.
She swallowed hard. “If you want to cancel the mission and wait for Segonian backup, I understand.”
Janwar’s hand tightened around hers. “We’ve already discussed the risks that would entail. The Ranasura and its troop transports can only hide from radar. They don’t have the visual cloaking abilities we do. By the time they arrive, this side of the moon will be in daylight, and the Gathendiens would have no difficulty seeing them coming.”
And if any gifted ones or Immortal Guardians were being held on that base, waiting would give the Gathendien researchers weeks to find a new virus that would succeed in killing every human, gifted one, and Immortal Guardian on Earth so the lizard bastards could swoop in and claim the planet for themselves.
“Okay,” she said a little too brightly as worry clawed at her. “New plan. You all stay up here on the Tangata and create a diversion with the drones while I sneak inside with a T android and see whom I can find.”
“Drek no,” Janwar barked, his brows drawing down in a deep V.
“Look, this is more than any of you signed up for,” she said, agitation rising. “Way more. I see that now, and I don’t want you all to risk your lives.”
He made an angry, scoffing sound. “So you want us to sit up here while you risk yours?”
“I told you, I’m very hard to kill—”
“But you can be killed!” he shouted.
Silence fell.
“You can… be killed.”
Simone didn’t know how to respond as she met Janwar’s russet eyes. His emotions flowed into her where they still held hands, allowing her to feel the anguish hidden behind the anger.
He loved her and didn’t want to lose her.
They were two peas in a pod then. The same sentiment had driven her to suggest the new plan. She couldn’t bear the thought of him dying while helping her fulfill her quest to save her friends. The fact that they didn’t even know if any of her friends were being held on that base just made things worse.
T spoke when no one else would. “Shortly after our last conversation, one of the Gathendiens mentioned they would not break for mid meal for another ship hour.” And boy, did the AI sound disgruntled. “To alleviate Kova’s boredom, I have been letting him listen to the happenings on the bridge.”
To alleviate Kova’s boredom or T’s?
“Simone,” T continued, “Kova has asked me to deliver the following message: I don’t know why you might need to be told this, but in case you do… You are not expendable. You are my friend. And I need you. We all do.”