Aliens Vs. Humans (Aliens Series Book 4) Read Online Free PDF Page B

blinking yellow. And the Hunt territory boundaries are purple.” She leaned forward, squinting. “Of the 27 Hunter stars showing, I see only two that lie close to the 480 light year boundary.”
    Cassie nodded eagerly. “What are the names of those two systems? And their exact distance from Sol?”
    Nikola looked down at her datapad’s screen. “The Hunter system that lies uparm from Sol belongs to the species named Dakto, while the downarm system is the home of the Usulungun species. There is no species imagery for any Hunter system. Though we can be sure these two Hunter peoples are social carnivore predators, like the Hunters we’ve fought.”
    “Distances?” Jack reminded her.
    She brushed back her brown bangs and squinted down at the datapad. “The Dakto Hunt star lies 489 light years from Sol, while the Usulungun Hunt star is 478 light years from Sol.” Nikola fixed pale blue eyes on him. “Jack, this is the best I can get from this holo data.”
    He gave her a thumbs-up. “You did fine, just fine.” Jack scanned the Hunt territory stars and boundary for each species. “The Dakto Hunters control only nine subject people stars, while the Usulungun Hunters control 23 stars. Plus their star is closer to the center of Orion Arm.” He fixed on his Spy sister. “Cassie, you think one of these two Hunt stars is the home for the Arbitors?”
    She raised both hands in a Who Knows? gesture. “Hard to say. If we accept the 3,000 year age for this Hunters of the Great Dark system, then it makes sense the oldest members might be in the center of Orion Arm. With a large number of subject people stars under their control. Like these Usulungun carnivores. But it could be either species.”
    “Or neither species,” said Gareth from his seat next to Maureen. The trim, broad-shouldered man looked around. “My friends, my combat allies, it could be this Arbitor ship was tending to a dispute at a distance of 480 light years. Its home system could be anywhere in Orion Arm. Especially if multiple Arbitor ships are roaming through space, on the alert to respond to dispute calls.” The black-bearded Welshman looked to Jack. “Fleet Captain, I’m sorry. But there are many unknowns and few facts about this Arbitor threat.”
    Behind Jack the Asian crewwoman entered with a large carton of booze. When she pulled out a bottle of Europa Light Ale, he reached out for it, beating Nikola by a few milliseconds. “Mine!”
    “Of course.” The woman handed him the bottle, then walked down to Hideyoshi. “Fleet Admiral, please take charge of allocating who among your guests receives which liquid refreshment.”
    They all laughed at the woman’s pleading tone.
    Jack popped the cap off the bottle, inhaled the aroma of hops, and took a long drink of the brew. Licking his lips, he looked around the table. “People, I do not pretend to have all the answers to something this serious. Just some hunches. And a determination to resist this Arbitor. Anybody else?”
    “I do. An observation I mean,” said Zhāng, whose destroyer Admiral Chester M. Nimitz was holding station in open space near the tunnel entry to the Dock Cavern. The middle-aged captain, who had fought well in their second star venture, was dressed in the red uniform of Hideyoshi’s Mars fleet. She fixed black eyes on him. “Fleet Captain Jack, if this Arbitor threat is real, and its ship as powerful as these Nasen say, then we must look at the possibility of failure.”
    “Shit no!” yelled Maureen, lifting a clenched fist.
    Jack gripped Maureen’s left hand. “Patience, Combat Commander. Let us hear what Fleet Commander Zhāng has to say.”
    The Belfast native gave him a sour look, pulled her hand from his with an abrupt jerk and scowled at Gareth when he tried to hold her other hand. “Talk. Then we kill the bastards!”
    Zhāng looked around the table, her manner professionally calm, drawing in the attention of everyone. “Our three fleets have won every space