Beyond the Empyreal Stars

29.

29.

"So it's true then," Marty Weston spoke after Duke finished his report. "You do have the Terrians in your possession...and have for over a month now."

"Yes, it's true," he nodded, not only speaking to him, but the other colony leaders on the holographic screen in front of him.

Including New York, there were nine colonies in different cities around the world, varying in the amount of people they had. The leaders included Marty Weston of London, Cyril Augustine of Paris, Chloe Holland of Sydney, Wei Fan of Beijing, Nilima Sharma of Mumbai, Aram Darbinian of Cairo, Paulo Belmonte of Rio, and Omari Zidane of Algiers.

They stared at him as he stood with his arms crossed. They weren't the only ones, though. Duke's mother, Lizzie, Carson, and his five officers sat around the conference table behind him.

"And they are still alive?" Omari questioned.

"Yes, but they are not in our 'possession,' as you put it. They are free to move around Grand Central, though not outside."

"And you trust them?" Chloe asked. "You trust them with your people?"

"Of course, we trust them," Lizzie spoke from behind him. Her tone was laced with anger. "They were our friends before and they are our friends now. They're not the enemy..."

"So you say..."

Duke glanced back and shot Lizzie a look, to which she grumbled as Carson rubbed her back.

"They are being constantly watched. As of right now, they are with Graham going over some of the specs on the Terrian ships we have. Their insight has enabled us to make even more advancements, which we will be passing along just after this meeting is adjourned."

Omari scoffed. "If you are still alive by then..."

Duke stood straighter, looking at them all with narrowed eyes. "Just as you said, they have been with us for over a month now. Are we still alive? Yes. Just because the Terrians and the Alliance abandoned us before doesn't mean they will do it again. These Terrians – Nova, Bas, Padric, and Odette – are ones we can trust. They were the ones to change the Alliance's mind about sanitizing Earth. If not for them going back on everything they were trained for, none of us would be here today."

"Isn't one of them – Odette – one that you had a...relationship...with before the first war?" Nilima asked, raising an eyebrow. "For you to come to their defense..."

"That has nothing to do with this!" Duke raged.

All eight leaders leaned back, even though he was only on a screen in front of them, not in person. If he could, though, he would reach through and smack some sense into them.

He'd already done it to himself two weeks before...with the help of his family after Odette put him in his place.

"That was the past and I am talking about the present and future. Our future. Earth's future. We can't live like this for much longer. Sooner or later, Comae will return. When he does, and you know he will, we'll need the Alliance's help or else the human race will become extinct."

Everyone was quiet, even those behind Duke. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears and tried to calm himself before he spoke again.

"All of us received the comm from the Terrian Prime One about Odette, Nova, Bas, and Padric being here after being MIA for five years. I've already spoken with her multiple times about the issue, though I have not let them speak with her. None of you know this, but..." He included his family and officers in the generalization. "I have been in weekly contact with Diana for these last five years after she first contacted me a few months after the first war."