What her mother thought was a ridiculous waste of time, Sasha saw as a matter of life and death. If she was going to have a significant presence and several million followers, she wanted to inspire others to do good. So many people were in desperate need, and she just wanted to improve their lives any way possible.
Since the Preor had arrived, the class split had become far worse. The Preor said they were helping, but Sasha couldn’t see evidence of their work. They seemed to strut or fly around with complete arrogance, sometimes destroying buildings, setting fire to parks and even killing people. They acted like they could do whatever they wanted without considering the impact on people’s lives.
They had brought great wealth with them. And, as usual, the most prominent and wealthy people thrived. Meanwhile, the unwashed masses remained forgotten as they always had been.
Sasha was angry enough with her train of thought when she went through her inbox. So, what she saw next sparked her temper until it bloomed into full-on rage.
Several of her usual charities had rejected her services. They were loyal to the Preor, and her views were not appreciated. They did not want her support any longer.
She stared at the phone screen, her fingers shaking.
“The Preor then!” her mother snapped. Sasha jumped like she had been stung.
“What about them?” the station manager asked warily.
“If we get the scoop on them, all the dirty details, you’ll put her on every day?”
The station manager nodded slowly. “That would be good for numbers, yes. But we need a balanced review. She can’t stand there and bad mouth them for an hour without proof.”
“You’ll get it.” Her mother smiled cattily. The manager turned to Sasha and frowned, no doubt thinking not just of her controversial status but the few times Sasha had failed to show because she had partied too hard the night before.
Sasha experienced a moment of panic as Jenna strode toward her. She didn’t like this plan and she knew her mother would have something risky in mind. When her mother grabbed her arm and rushed her out the door, Sasha realized she was once more being carried down a stream she didn’t choose. Her mother’s ambition was as relentless and violent as white-water rapids.
All Sasha could do was hold on to the boat and hope to hell she didn’t drown.
Chapter Two
Whelon headed for the med bay, the ship full of activity, which slowed his progress through the metal halls. The last few months had become more and more disorganized as Preor warriors found their mates and abandoned their duties. He did not blame them, but it he would appreciate some order back on board.
Whelon was amazed at how fast the military disintegrated when their officers were otherwise occupied. The Preor were known for their discipline, their dedication. Even though older recruits continued their regular training and duties without supervision, younger ones simply stopped reporting for duty.
He tipped his head to a few groups of warriors who moved past, pleased to see they were in uniform and moving in formation as they hurried to their duties. He had never realized how much work Engineering Master Vende performed around the ship until he also fell under the spell of his mate. As engineering master, Vende was not supposed to be in charge of disciplining the warriors, but when the primary warrior and war master disappeared, Vende had “picked up the slack,” as humans said.
It had taken Taulan approximately a week to realize what was happening on his ship. His baby girl, young Lorrasyh, had begun randomly setting fire to supporting structures wherever she traveled. No one could blame him for being distracted, but with warriors goo-fhing off and the ship being randomly set on fire, it was more than the third fleet could take.
Penelope had taken to screaming in a loud, shrill tone every time Lorrasyh set something on fire. When the ship’s AI drenched the child with the sprinkler systems and made her cry, the child’s human mother, Lana, had argued with Penelope. Eventually the family headed down to Kouvai Nihon for good when Penelope began randomly setting off fire extinguishers whenever Lorrasyh was near essential systems.
Whelon finally reached the med bay, the area quiet and nearly empty at this time of morning. He nodded to a couple of healing warriors, Preor who would hopefully be healing masters themselves one day. Some had been up all night tending the few patients left over from the scale pox incident, and Whelon was proud to see they treated the patients with utmost care, even if they themselves were exhausted.
He sat at one of the ship’s terminals and began his inventory of the medicines currently being manufactured. With Dawn’s assistance in growing necessary plants, Grace and Carla had been working nonstop to process the medicines, only slowing over the last few weeks as their pregnancies became obvious. Grace and Carla were only a few months along, but they were taking it easy and he and Primary Healer Yazen were making sure they rested as needed.
All the medicines in the world wouldn’t help the Preor if they compromised the mates or the dragonlets. Whelon felt a fierce satisfaction when he thought about Lana’s babies, even if Lorrasyh was a complete nightmare. The Preor would go on. Every hope they had pinned on the Earth breeding program would be realized.
Just not for me.
Like all Preor, he had hoped he would find a mate, almost certain of the eventuality. Yet, as days turned into months and he watched others find their matches, he realized his hope might be in vain. He didn’t mingle with the humans often enough, and he detested the what the humans called “cattle calls” at Preor Choosing Station Tau. He simply refused to attend them—any of them.
A noisy group of Preor strode down the hall outside the med bay—visible through the windows—all carrying tools and obviously heading for the command deck to make needed repairs. He grinned and shook his head. It was incredible that three young warriors were needed to replace Vende. Two Preor warriors were on the work roster to replace War Master Taulan, and it was a similar story for all the other primary warriors and masters who had discovered their mates on Earth.
The number of warriors necessary to man the integral positions was immaterial. All that mattered was that the ship ran smoothly once more. Whelon looked over his med bay to check everyone was working and waved to Yazen when he caught the male’s gaze. Yazen nodded in response and proceeded to care for his patients. There was a deep silence hiding between every movement and word, a comforting lull that existed in between the soft noises of Preor moving throughout the space. This was what the ship had been like before they arrived on Earth.
Quiet, organized, and peaceful. It was how it should be. A bit of chaos and celebration was great, but every day? Unnecessary.
“You go to the party and then you go home. You don’t live there,” he muttered the human saying.
“What’s that Whelon?” Penelope said cheerfully.
“I was enjoying the silence, Penelope.”
“Well, like it or not, it’s going to get noisy.”
“Why is that?” he asked in exasperation.
“They require your presence at Preor Tower.”
“Why?” He frowned, baffled by the request. “Isn’t Healing Master Chashan present?”
“Yes, but he wants you to assist him. Melissa is almost full term and Jarek is a nightmare. Also, Delany and Ellie might have complications with their births because of their past physical issues.”