He knew that Naden wouldn’t stop her since he like a good joke and Saben would laugh after he yelled a bit if he even got the joke. He realized that he’d missed his old friend but he really didn’t need the hassle they could cause. He liked not having anyone depend on him.

“That little bitch.” Saben grunted letting Mike know he got the joke. “She could have at least used a new one. I hate when she calls me old.”

Mike smirked. “You got to remember Saben. To her you are old. Humans don’t live as long as other species. Wait, the do live longer then Tero.”

“Shut it Mike.” Saben growled. “We still make it to one hundred years old. That may not compare to the elf four hundred or the human one-fifty but it is still long enough to really live.”

“I’m not the one calling you a maze stalker horn head.” Mike laughed. “Jones still has a soft spot for you. You should be happy that she does. At least we are still all friends.”

“Regardless of he smart ass.” Saben smiled. “I have missed her.”

Mike thought back to the old days and remembered how close they had been. He had always believed that if humans and Tero could breed something they thankfully couldn’t do; Jones would have left the military to give birth to Saben’s child. They never showed it openly but they had always been very close and they always seemed to care more then they should about each other.

He looked at the loading ramp as it extended and locked into place. Mike felt Saben fight a jump as the door opened and guards started down the ramp followed by an elf in an Alliance uniform and a female dressed in a lab coat. Mike smiled as they came down the ramp and moved towards them.

“Is that my old CO I see.” The tall blond elf said. “It’s good to know that you’re still out there fighting the fight Michlon. The problem is that we need you with us more then we need you out there causing trouble.”

Mike laughed and hugged his old friend. “How are you Commander Ovar?”

“It’s General Ovar now Captain Dàj.” The elf smiled. “And you damn well know that neither of us wants to call to call each other by title. How have you been? Have you taken care of your problem?”

“I don’t drink as much as I use to and I make pritty good money running cargo.” Mike smiled. “What about you? How’s the military treating you?”

“I’m doing well.” Naden smiled. “They want to promote me to a higher rank and put me behind a desk again. Not something I want to do but the only other option is get demoted and I don’t think that that’s going to be easy.”

“Good thing you came then.” Mike grinned looking up at Jones. “We might be able to figure out a way to do that for you. Hello Jones. How are you?”

“I’m fine Mike. It’s so good to see you.” Jones said hugging Mike as a young looking female with elven features and Fellein markings.

Mike looked the attractive young woman over. “I see you brought along a guest. Nice to meet you.” He said holding out his hand.

She didn’t take his hand and frowned at him. “This is my assistant and body guard, Alleaca Xu.”

“Master Xu’s daughter.” Mike bowed slightly. “You must also be her body guard. That is the reason the daughter of one of the finest warriors in the galaxy would be working as a lab assistant to a woman who doesn’t need one.”

“You’re very perceptive Captain Dàj.” She said stone-faced. “Yes I am her body guard but it was the only way I could get a job working in a lab was to double up. I would rather work only as her assistant them as her guard as well.”

“You always were like your mother.” Mike mumbled. “How id your father doing?”

Alleaca eyed him. “Do I know you?”

“Not any more.” Mike smiled. “You might remember me from when I trained under you father fifty years ago. I was much younger then.”

“You Samurai.” She finally smiled. “Your were my fathers favorite student.”

“So you do remember me then.” Jon smiled. “I’m surprised, That was so long ago and you were so much younger then.”

“I was nine.” She nodded. “At least the Fellein in me allowed me to remember back then. The elf in me made me wait in till I was in my forties before I got to leave home.”

“You’re lucky you were born to him.” Mike laughed. “It took me fifty years to finish training under him. Even then he told me I could learn so much more if I stayed longer but I had to return home and prepare for to join the military.”

“My father hated that. Are you still in the military?” She asked.

“No.” Mike frowned. “I’m a private citizen now. Left the behind the military life three years ago. It was a relief to finally be able to live for myself and not for the rest of the galaxy.”

“So why are you here.” Jones asked. “I thought you’d be running some cargo to some planet on the other side of the galaxy right now.”

“I cleared my schedule just to get be here.” Mike gave her a smile. “I couldn’t miss my greatest design being made into a ship is grand but being there to on its first flight is something even greater.”

“A specially when you’re going to be the one in the captains chair.” Saben said. “At least if you except my offer anyway. Shall we all retire to my office to discuss it.”

“I think that would be grand.” Naden grinned. “I for one would feel mush better in a place that we won’t be easily seen. I believe we have much to talk about.”

“Yea, we do.” Mike grunted. “And I think that we really need to get someplace where we can’t be seen. We need to talk about what’s going on with the rest of the galaxy. I think we also need to talk about the danger we’re all in.”

* * *

The four friends and the guards with them moved away from the open area in the docking port. As they did the man watching the feed from the spy remote stood up and moved off to the room that they often called the “Throne Room”. He had to report to his master as soon as possible. The four people he wanted to find were all in one place at one time.

It was rare that an Arona Gnoll would serve another but this being was different. Gnolls didn’t like humans as a rule. Humans were good for food but not much else and they weren’t as good at that as elves and the other races.

This human on the other hand wasn’t like the other of his race though. He was similar to a Gnoll in his attitude and reminded many of them of a creature of legend. This human was the reason the Gnolls had joined the Sslisk in this war. He had won their loyalty and they would continue to hold that loyalty in till his death.

He entered the “Throne Room” bowing meekly. “Master. I have word on the people you want us to watch.”

His metallic voice came over the machines in the room and the click of the bug creatures that often kept the master company. “Good. You may speak Yar. My friends here will want to hear this as well.”

“Yes master” Yar nodded. “As you believed the general and scientist have arrived. The mercenary you call Dàj had arrived some time ago. They were in a rush to get away from the open area at the port.”

“That would be Dàj’s doing.” The master’s voice sounded a little more human as he said that. “He will have his talk with them before to long and they will all believe that one of there own has done what they have seen happening. This is good. Signal the Crusher and the Kraken and tell them to prepare to leave the system. I will join them shortly.”

“Yes master.” Yar bowed and began to leave. “I will do that right now.”

“Wait.” The master said. “Stay for a moment and I will join you.”

“Yes master.” Yar bowed in disgust as the bugs began to speak to the master as if her were a child.

“Remember what you said you would do Warlord Harten.” The bug clicked. “Dàj is to die. If he survives this war the Sslisk bring will be harder to win. My people will still stay in this but you will need to depend on the other races more.”

“You need to remember one thing Lord Frin.” The master’s metallic voice said. “I want him dead as much or more then you do. He is the one who did this to me. I would love to live my life without this breather mask on me but that isn’t how it works. If I can kill him I will, if not I will try again.”

“Then since all you can do is try then we will allow you to.” The bug clicked. “We will expect to here from you soon.”

“Very well Lord Frin.” The master said. “I will work hard to make sure Dàj is dead but I must warn you that he has impeccable luck and seems impossible to kill. If I fail to do so don’t be surprised or angry because I failed.”

“We will hold no malice to you Lord Harten.” The bug clicked as it started to leave. “The his family has shown themselves to be notoriously hard to kill. If you fail we will step in.”

The bugs when out the back entrance and Yar finally looked up his master whom was now standing. He saw the golden metal plate that covered his master’s mouth and the red uniform he wore didn’t fully hide the cybernetic parts of his body. Lord Harten was a monster of a man as it was but to add the non-living parts was what made him truly frightening.

“Come Yar.” The master said as he came forward. “We have work to do and as you heard, our allies will not wait as long as we might like.”

“Why have the Sslisk allied themselves with those insects my master?” Yar asked. “With the other new allies they have gathered shouldn’t they be able to handle the Alliance without them?”

“The Sslisk high lords want their technology Yar.” The master said leading him down the hall. “You may have not noticed that even though they have the numbers of the goblin races and the pscyonics of the Ithilid and the unstoppable force of the Orcair but they are lacking in the technology to win in space on a regular basis. Even with the added strength of your people, the Kobold, the Yen-ti and the Hontess we are still in need of someone more powerful then us.”

“I believe I understand my master.” Yar nodded. “But if they are meant to help us with their tech then why do they not dedicate ships as the rest of us have?”

The master stopped and looked at Yar. “Because we don’t want them to show themselves yet Yar. We want the Alliance to be fully committed before they join in. This war will be a great one and my people might very well rejoin the Combine just to survive.”

Yar hated the way that sounded. The bugs were more dangerous then the master of the Sslisk realized. They saw all beings including their own as food and that meant that they were a greater danger then any other race.

The Sslisk may win the war but loose to these creatures in the end. He knew that the first time the bugs showed any type of betrayal that mean of the Sslisk Combine members would change sides. There was something wrong with the bugs and it bothered him that the master was so willing to work for them.