Page 42 of Advance and Retreat
“Hold this.Don’t deactivate it,” Kila told Mereta, removing the phase device from his chest.He appeared to the waiting Beonid twins in the cockpit and Piras, who was in the cargo area.“Our rescue is safely among us.Any word on Lokmi?”
The admiral breathed a sigh of relief.“He reported he’s a little banged up from the crash, but your programming it to land in the lake kept him from major injury.He’s made it to an unpopulated area.We’ll pick him up now, then return to the safehouse.”Piras turned to the twins, who watched him and Kila with what Mereta assumed to be avaricious curiosity.“You have the coordinates.”
“Yes, Admiral,” the female Beonid purred.Her gaze lingered on him before she turned to the controls her brother had already begun to tap.
Piras’ jaw tightened as he glanced at Kila.The Nobek shook his head slightly, his erstwhile smirk turning to a grimace.
No wonder Kila had been adamant Mereta remain phased.His rescuers’ allies were apparently a problem...or could become one.
He’d have to continue on the road to escape, though he had no idea how much of it remained to travel.
Mereta remained phased throughout the trip to pick up a battered but exhilarated Lokmi, who was welcomed by his clanmates’ great relief and joy.Mereta’s gaze went to the shimmering containment unit the Imdiko held.Its shadowy passenger was slumped motionless at the bottom.
With Lokmi safe in the shuttle, they headed toward the city.Piras phased to keep Mereta company.
“The bravery of you and your clanmates has no parallel,” the elder Dramok praised.
“Don’t sell yourself short, sir.Most rarely attribute courage in the face of tremendous physical danger to spiritual masters.You’ve proven them wrong on all counts.”
Mereta chuckled.“What’s the next step?”
“Getting a message to associates we hope will assist us in getting you off the planet.”
“And you as well?”
Piras shrugged.“If it’s possible.Don’t worry; I have every intention of my clan and I living long, full lives.”
“Good.How soon can we hope to leave Jedver?”
“Not for a week at least, and only if we’re lucky.As you noted, the All will be desperate to recover you.It’ll be terribly difficult to escape and not be detected.Damned near impossible.”Piras considered.“The longer we wait to attempt our getaway, the more likely the All will assume we’ve already gone.”
“If nothing is heard from me, however, it could assume I’m laying low instead.”
“There’s that too.All we can do is try.”
They were silent until the shuttle reached its destination.“Home sweet home,” the Beonid male called.“No sign of anyone in sight, so make it quick.”
Lokmi held his phase unit in his hand, which Kila took so they shared its effects.Mereta followed them through the hatch, which remained closed.He noted the unpleasant strangeness of passing through solid matter, as if he were being dragged through a resisting force, then he was outside the door of a small, squat building.He had no time to consider his surroundings as he rushed through a closed door to reach its interior.
He found himself in a loading area.His companions didn’t pause but continued at brisk trots toward a wall instead of the other three doors in the space.Lokmi and Kila disappeared through the metal partition.Piras waited for Mereta to go through before following.
They emerged and unphased in a storage room filled with bins of computer parts.A young Earther female Mereta recognized hurried to Piras first to hug him.“Thank goodness you’re safe.I was beginning to freak out.”
“A few twists and turns we hadn’t anticipated came up, but here we are.”
Matara Hope gazed at Mereta.“So I see.Excuse my surprise, Secretary-General.I was under the impression Piras was merely making contact, not conducting an actual rescue mission.”
Mereta bowed.“Circumstances made time of the essence, I’m afraid.How far out of harm’s way are we?”
“As safe as we can be, which isn’t as safe as I’d like it,” Kila snorted.“And bound to get more dangerous as the hunt for you begins.”
As if to underscore his words, the sole door Mereta saw in the room banged open.The group shrank behind the shelves, Mereta included.Between a couple of bins of wiring, he watched a Dantovonian buzz in.The door slid shut behind him.
“Containment on, lethal setting,” it nearly shouted.“Piras!”
“Yes, Elcoger.”Piras stepped out to greet whom Mereta assumed was their host.
“What have you done?Alerts are going out all over the city...hell, all over the planet.Tell me you didn’t bring him here!”
