Syn-En: Plague World: The Founders War Begins Read Online Free PDF Page A

tongue hung out his mouth, he’d look just like a dog with its head out the window.
    The Amarook sent her a bundle of disapproval, then an image of himself higher on an evolutionary scale than a dog. “There are many places where the sun doesn’t shine, Nell Stafford.”
    Bei’s shoulders shook. Bowing his head, he manhandled the smile off his face.
    Nell elbowed him in the gut. Her sword points melted back into fingers. “Amarooks aren’t the only thing that can be confined to the dog house.”
    Her husband nudged her back. “Glad to see a touch of humor is calming you.”
    She seriously doubted Elvis was being funny.
    The air currents died down, but the shuttle hovered a foot off the deck. A door-shape melted off the curved hull and a white ramp rolled down.
    Groat appeared in the dark opening. Red armor glistened in the lights.
    Nell lifted her foot. “Let’s get this over with.”
    Bei stayed her. “Let him come to us. He’s an uninvited guest.”
    Four other Scraptors fanned out behind him. Each cradled a rifle.
    Apollie sucked in a breath. “Weapons are not allowed during a consult.”
    Nell snorted. The Paladin was a fine one to talk. She carried her own set of chef’s knives on her feet.
    “Stand down.” Bei glanced at the Skaperian warrior. “Their weapons are powered down. In the second it takes to charge, we could kill them several times over.”
    Nell curled her hands into fists. She mustn’t touch him when he was in battle mode. He would need his arms to fight.
    Groat clomped down the ramp and across the deck.
    His guard protected his ship.
    The hair at Nell’s nape stirred. What in the world?
    “Passive sensors.” Bei set his hand on her back. “Since their scans picked up nothing on the outside, they’re trying it again on the inside.”
    “They won’t get anything.” Elvis plucked wiry peach-colored feathers from his muzzle. “The insides are coated with Amarook crystals. Their signals will bounce right back.”
    Groat’s pinschers opened and closed. Fists swung from his hand appendages underneath them. He stomped to within five feet of them then stopped. “The Founders demand the immediate withdrawal of three thousand Humans from their claimed lands.”
    Nell blinked. Oh, thank God. The Founders were demanding more people relocated, not accusing the Syn-En of smuggling. Her gut clenched. But they had demanded boarding rights on a technicality. Why? She clamped her lips together. Bei was in charge. He would handle Bug-ugly.
    “Why not send us a communiqué?” Bei stepped into the Groat’s personal space. “Why stop our voyage and board my ship?”
    “I thought the NSA flagship, the Nell Stafford, would be more impressive.” Groat’s mandibles retracted. Spit glistened on his spiky teeth.
    Nell squeezed her eyes closed. She hadn’t wanted the ship named after her, hadn’t asked for it.
    Bei bared his own teeth. “Many have underestimated Nell Stafford and paid for it with their lives.”
    Groat’s eye stalks looped down. He swung his arm and opened his hand. A red crystal skipped across the metal-plated deck and skidded to a stop near the toe of Bei’s boot. “The planet where the squatters live is slated for purification in ten days. The regulations require a verified contact. If you cannot remove the vermin before then, their deaths are upon you.”
    Ridges erupted along Bei’s arm, tore open his sleeves.
    Good gravy, her husband wanted to slice and dice Bug-ugly. Setting her hand on his arm, she calmed his NDA. The ridges slowly subsided. “What planet?”
    “Surlat.” After a nod in Nell’s direction, Groat pivoted and stomped toward his ship.
    Surlat? Nell cast about in her memories but came up empty. “Why do I know that name?”
    Stooping, Bei picked up the crystal. “Because that is the name of the virus that wiped out over ninety percent of life on Earth.”
    “Not just Earth.” Apollie dug her fingers into the feathers on Elvis’s head. “The Surlat