time if they had ignored the ship, but he doubted it. The chances were that they wouldve discovered the terra-forming facilities or the base or both.
Time, he realized finally, was all they could buy. The question was, now that hed taken captives, just how much time could he buy?
On that thought, he changed course and headed toward communications. Inge and Myune both looked up at him questioningly when he entered. A spark of interest flickered in Myunes eyes that briefly distracted him.
How long, he wondered abruptly, since any female had given him that particular look? He realized he didnt have a clue. Hed been too focused on surviving and seeing to it that his people survived to notice any invitations, too caught up in his grief for that matter. He also realized he didnt particularly welcome it at the moment.
Granted, it was soothing to the beating his ego had taken from the look of horror on the Earth womans face and Myune was an attractive female, but the thought and a flicker of interest had no sooner crossed his mind than her pheromones struck him like a sledge hammer.
She was in season, looking for a male to breed with her.
Breeding is prohibited at the present time, he said coolly. See the med-tech after your shift, soldier.
Heavy handed and clumsy, he thought in disgust when he saw the look of outrage cross her face. She hadnt actually even invited him-not verbally anyway-and it was uncouth to point out her scent, especially publicly and he had a bad feeling Inges presence made it too public to excuse himself on those grounds.
I already have, Sir! Myune responded with bare civility. I know its prohibited right now with stores rationed.
Discomfort flickered through him. Good. I need the transmissions intercepted between the alien craft and their base. Transfer them to my quarters.
Their base has been trying to hail the craft for over an hour, Sir, Inge volunteered. Should we block the incoming?
Anka felt his belly clench. For now, just ignore it-record it. If you pick up anything suggesting they might be sending a rescue, let me know immediately.
Inge shrugged. As slow as their ships are it would take them weeks to get here.
Even so, Anka said tightly.
He was somewhat easier in his mind once hed listened to the transmissions back and forth between their home base and the ship several times. Theyre relayed their preliminary findings, but those, fortunately, didnt include the intelligence that theyd spotted either their base or the terra-forming units.
So maybe capturing them the moment they showed signs of making a descent wasnt the stupidest thing hed ever done? Particularly when a calculation of their path of descent had put them landing less than a mile from terra-forming unit three?
It was just pure bad luck that theyd picked that spot. They hadnt seen anything to report and he wouldve had to capture them regardless since the odds were almost astronomical that they couldve missed it completely. They couldnt afford to let the humans know-yet. Undoubtedly, they were already suspicious, though, or they wouldnt have sent a ship to check it out.
The problem was, what to do with them now that he had them?
Send them back with a warning? It would be a bluff, but he was almost certain the humans werent in any position to call it. Could they afford an almost certainty though?
Inge had pointed out that their space flight capabilities were still limited. They could count on having a month, at the least, to prepare themselves, but at the rate their situation was deteriorating that would only mean they would be less prepared to fend off an invasion, not more prepared.
He was tempted to drop the matter in the laps of the politicians, but discarded the notion
Kim Iverson Headlee Kim Headlee