The Eden War - Book 3 of Re-Forge

Family Reunion

The next day, Adara told Eden to lower her shields, and she now stood in one of many shuttle bays that Eden quickly modified to accept many attack ships at one time.

Adara watched the attack ship dock, and the first of thousands of reptiles spilled out. They were so busy looking at everything that they were tripping over each other in their excitement. Adara waited as they assembled in the entry hall and was pleased in the knowledge that the final phase of the plan had begun.

The last to come off the ship was one male and two female reptiles that immediately became the focus of her attention. All three were shoved from behind aggressively to force them into the greeting area. They stood there in heavy chains with muzzles secured to their heads.

The prisoners had open cuts to parts of their bodies. A tear welled in Adara's right eye as she saw their condition. The two females were more pleasing to look at than the males of the species even though they looked massive, more savage, and much stronger than their male counterparts. Adara was surprised that such powerful looking females seemed to lack any aggression. Was that beaten out of them? Is their role totally servile, are they gentle giants?

Then she noticed that the male reptile punishing them, was the very same leader that she negotiated surrender with over the holovid, and she thought: "What an Asshole."

He towered over all the other male reptiles, and he really was 'all' muscle. The leader appeared to be a reptile in the ultimate peak of his personal power and confidence oozed from him.

He looked at her and said: "You looked much larger on the viewer, child. He handed the chained and frightened prisoners to one of his people and said: "Come to me, I will not harm you. Adara felt it was time to show a little intimidation. She stopped about a meter from the leader, and he said: "Closer," She took a short step closer, and he slowly moved his huge, clawed hand palm up, to just below her face.

A razor-sharp, needle-pointed claw at least twelve centimetres long touched the lower side of her chin, and she knew that it would draw a small amount of blood if Adara we're fully bio-human. She flinched as he expected, and when he gently removed his claw, there was a trickle of dark red blood running down the claw, and down Adara's neck.

He held the long, blood covered claw to his mouth and made a show of intimidation as its long thin tongue slid over his lower fangs and then licked his bloody claw. His eyes rolled back into his head. Then he said: "You taste beautiful, so very worth the wait." Adara shook with pure controlled rage and the reptilian leader, mistaking the shaking for fear, said: "Don't fear me, child, I need what is in your head. I simply wanted to see if you were real, or just another type of human-machine like the small round death spheres." He looked around: "There is none of those here I hope."

Adara calmed her anger and said, As I said, no weapons will work here." She looked at a soldier carrying a laser pistol: "Tell him to take his weapon and shoot it at something."

Instead, he waved his hand and pulled out a pistol he had in a holster then he put the point against the head of one of the female prisoners and pulled the trigger.

Adara nodded and thought: "Yep, that confirms it for me, thank God Eden disabled all of the weapons she scanned. There are no more doubts for me." To the leader, she said, why don't you order all your people coming onto this ship to leave their weapons. Once Eden disables them, they are just rubbish forever after."

The leader said: "You could have told me that earlier, this is my favourite personal weapon. I loved it so much." He stroked it, then savagely threw it away. He said to his assistant: "Contact the fleet. No weapons are allowed that have advanced technology, including projectile weapons, and bring me my knives. God, I hate this place already. That will be the first thing I fix when I take over."