Page 70 of Warrior Revealed

She wasn’t claustrophobic but she started to feel like she was acquiring a new phobia as the rocky walls pressed in more and more. It was getting to the point she was about to turn back and figure a way to lure Tarsus out with meat or something. That’s when a tiny growl echoed ahead.

“All right. Just a little bit farther. This is insane.” She belly crawled deeper down, grateful for the light coming from the alien cell phone strapped to her arm.

Abruptly the space widened and she was actually able to stand. A trio of strange glowing white orbs bounced around just outside the halo of light projected by her comm.

“What the fuck?” Nadzia froze as she tried to figure out what the hell they were.

She angled her comm to see better, and captured a tiny shadow with a long tail that looked suspiciously like Tarsus on the hunt. One of the white blobs came barreling toward the kitten and she sucked in a frightened breath. The swath of light revealed it was some sort of bird. Like a tiny ostrich, not much bigger than the panther cub. The bird knocked into Tarsus, sending him tumbling across the stone floor. Tarsus was back on his feet in no time and bounded for the ostrich, but the other two white-feathered birds had joined in. The mass started rolling around, luminescent wings flapping. Tiny growls and squawks echoed in the space.

I better to break this up before he gets hurt.She hesitantly approached the melee.

“You’re outnumbered, Tarsus, give up.”

The wild foursome paused to look at her when she reached the fracas. As the birds blinked their big dark eyes, she noticed their long legs and necks were plated like an armadillo. They had long hooked beaks and razor-sharp claws at the ends of both feet. She expected to find Tarsus bloody but he wasn’t. The kitten swatted at one of the birds but didn’t draw blood either. Rather than stabbing with its beak or claws, the little ostrich head-butted Tarsus.

They’re playing. She stared at the group totally stupefied. She’d watched videos of different species of animals playing together, but seeing it in person and among alien species was crazy.

As abruptly as the foursome stopped, the mass of glowing feathers and fur started up again, wildly leaping and tackling one another.

“Fine. But if you get too rough, I’m breaking it up,” she informed them.

As she sat on a large slab of rock, she realized it was actually a collapsed section of an old wall.

Perhaps there is something to this place being the remains of an old ruin.She smiled imagining some Osivoire archaeologist nerding out down here.

A loud crack accompanied by a cloud of dust filled the space. The terrible screech that followed had her jumping off the rock. Even with the light from her comm it was hard to see through the settling dust. She followed the pitiful sounds and discovered several rocks had broken free, trapping one of the ostriches.

“Okay, okay, just calm down.” She tried to soothe the wild-eyed bird as she removed the rocks.

Thankfully it looked like the brunt of the weight had hit another rock sticking up from the ground. She sat on the floor to get a better look at the ostrich as it wobbled to its feet. It tottered over and collapsed in her lap. Despite shaking all over it seemed fine.

“Careful for those claws.” She gingerly moved its sharp feet away from her bare thigh.

The other two ostriches crowded around her, their soft feathered bodies jostling her as they prodded their companion with their foreheads. Again, she was shocked by how gentle they were. The birds were obviously very intelligent. The wee little ostrich was more startled than hurt. It quickly got over the incident with the encouragement of the others and vacated her lap.

“Tarsus, I think it’s time to go.” She captured the kitten.

As she stood, there was a loud rumble beneath her feet and a deafening cry shook the space. More dirt and rock fell from the ceiling as the sound got louder. She looked to the far end of the passage and was filled with terror.

“Shit!”

A large glowing white mass was charging straight for her. It was another ostrich, a bigger one, a much bigger one. She couldn’t hold in her scream of terror. Rock, dust and debris showered down all around her as the enraged beast approached. There was a sudden pain in her head, then everything went black.

Aculus

“From what we know, the Miran Sona are a well-intentioned race. They’ve created a human colony in this sector of space to help preserve the humans from future disaster,” Payim explained to the Conclave.

“Races on the cusp of branching out into the galaxy can do more harm than good to themselves as they test advancements,” Tellar agreed.

“I don’t quite agree with the Miran Sona’s methods. They abduct the human colonists. Although we think the human government has sanctioned this in exchange for information and technology,” Payim added. “The Miran Sona that accompany the new colonists are conscripted into service by their own government. It’s a one-way trip. I believe they are citizens that are considered intelligent enough to handle the adversity of creating a colony but won’t be missed, and are certainly not privy to high-level information. Otherwise they would’ve informed us their people were watching over Earth before we made the trip.”

“Miran Sona technology nearly rivals our own. They can definitely traverse the rift. But from studying their ship they don’t have the means to process enough energy for a return trip, nor can they communicate over long distances. I don’t think we need worry about retaliation; however, I’d really like to smooth things over before we return to Earth,” Aculus explained.

“Why are they bothering with the humans in the first place?” Axilla asked.

“The Miran Sona were themselves saved from destruction. So, they’ve taken on this mission much like we try to aid other races in our quadrant,” he replied.

“There was some sort of plague that ravaged the other side of the cosmos. Apparently, the humans are immune, where many species are not.”

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