Sholan Alliance - AU Bk. 02 Ch. 02

She did listen and started a bit when he teased her about being made a Mascot. Crystal had to giggle as well since that sounded so funny. "Oh, I would be a horribly terrifying mascot. Fear my claws and fangs..." Crystal almost dissolved in a horrible case of giggles.

It was what he had been aiming for and the other women started snickering as well. Right about then the warrior outside pushed the food tray in. He raised an eyebrow at the women and then looked at Kingie. "Someone woke up rather upset and we talked and I finally managed to get her to smile and even giggle."

Crystal looked at the other warrior and made a pretend clawed hand and made a less than threatening Rowl. "Fear me for I am a horribly mean human." The ladies started snickering even more.

The warrior frowned slightly and then shook his fist at Kingie. "For giving away secrets I am going to challenge you to spar with me boy." A grin crossed his face as he slowly walked over to where Crystal was sitting. "It is good to see you laugh. I know it won't last very long but keep looking for humor and it will help." He was a light tan color and had the wider ears of a highlander. One finger stroked her cheek. "He is right though. You are a little fighter and we are going to talk to Senior Warrior Vangie about having some type of shoulder flash made. I would love to introduce you to my family as well. Show them the strength and courage a young female human had to come through this."

Crystal was looking shocked when he said that and tentatively leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him. "I didn't realize that at all. Right now almost anything will make me twitch and I have to force myself not to scream."

He returned the hug and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "We know that you have been having a really hard time dealing with males so we were keeping our distance. Right now I can tell you that there isn't a warrior aboard any of the vessels that wouldn't lay down their lives to protect you."

Beryl became serious. "We did have one warrior killed during boarding. We have been sending ongoing status reports on all of you. When we give him last rights if you think you can deal with it we would like you and some of the other women front and center. I think he would like that, having the women he helped save helping to honor his memory."

Crystal looked shocked since she hadn't realized that anyone other than pirates had died. She started crying again. "I am so sorry you lost a brother in arms." It was hard to hear through her tears but they made out enough of it. "I think we would all be honored. Would it be possible to send a message to his family?"

Beryl smiled at her. "Of course it would be okay. It would be more than okay and I know they would appreciate it. Notes like that won't get rid of the loss of a loved one but it will let them know he didn't die in vain. Now it is time to have some real food and not the broth you have been slurping down by the gallon."

They started eating and all three ladies were almost drooling as the scent hit them. "Oh my, I might not want to go home if they keep feeding us like this." Savanna took a bite and smiled as she chewed it. "Oh lordy that is good."

Z'Marl snickered. "I would invite you home for a real home cooked meal but there are connotations you wouldn't know about."

Sally almost choked at that and smacked her lightly. "God that was horrible you silly cat. What did I ever deserve to have to deal with the likes of you?" It was a pretend whine before she started snickering.

Savanna looked blank at that and Sally explained. "When a Sholan invites you over for a home cooked meal they are inviting you to spend time with them." She snickered slightly. "In this case she would just cook a good meal and nothing else. She was just seeing if she could make me choke on my food."

The three ladies started at the two of them and then sort of smiled. "I am so confused... Why can't we all just get along?" Angel wailed and pretended to start crying. Right about then an alert was passed letting them know they were dropping out of hyper and into the Terran space.

Satasha stood up. "I am going to talk to Doctor Desjean about a few things. I will be back eventually." She left the room and leaned against the wall and took several slow breaths. Over the last few days she had also started feeling sort of ill but had hidden it from the women.

The warrior outside the door took one look at her and called for a replacement to come and relieve him. "Satasha you look like crap. I am going to escort you to medical and if you argue I will toss you over a shoulder." He was next to her by now and was doing a quick check and he thanked Vartra that all Brothers were trained as paramedics. They served under the head of the cult of Vartra as a lay-Brother as well as being trained as special forces.

Satasha shook her head. "No argument from me. I was going to ask you to call for someone to help me." When he wrapped an arm around her she leaned against him and closed her eyes. Before she realized it she was being picked up and carried down the hallway.

When she was carried into medical the doctor sighed since she had been helping Satasha already. "Into the scanner young lady and then you are going to a room where you can sleep and recover." She had told the commander that she felt it was too soon to send them but he had his orders and noted her statement.

"Make sure as soon as we land that Yilly is brought over so I can check him as well." Vangie had expressed some concerns as well. Billy sounded like he was having the same symptoms as Satasha.

~~~

Once they were nearing Earth Vangie contacted the Captain of the ship that was escorting all of them. "Sir I am going to go and get Captain Madlax so he can land the ships where you instruct." He stood and after turning the bridge over to one of the other Sholan's he hurried back to Billy's room and walked in.

When he walked in he was rather shocked at how Billy looked. He was pale, curled into a ball, and shivering. He was also sweating heavily. Vangie hurried over to check on him and it almost looked like he had relapsed with the ni'uzu virus. It wasn't normal but wasn't unheard of. "Damn it he can't land this thing the way he is. Yilly I am going to dock with the escort and have them pilot this down. If you try to argue with me I will give you a sedative."

Billy tried sitting up and failed. "I am the only one that familiar with the mods I made. I need..." He groaned and collapsed back on the bed and gasped for air.

Vangie didn't bother arguing and settled for strapping him into the bed. "As soon as we land I will take you to see the doctor. Now rest or else." As he was striding out he called for a warrior to keep an eye on Billy and keep him in bed.

He settled in the command chair. "Sir I am sorry to report that Captain Madlax has relapsed into a fever he had while aboard our ship. He is not infectious or shouldn't be and has been immunized against it. It is my opinion that it was caused by the strain of the last week or two. Do you have anyone familiar with landing ships in tow? I would normally have someone detach the other vessel and leave it in station keeping but there are the pirates dead and alive aboard her."

The captain nodded and spoke in Swiss. He seemed to be discussing it with one of the officers before turning back to him. "I will need to dock with you and send over a crew to bring the two ships down. Lower shields and prepare for docking."

Vangie started snapping out orders in Sholan and they took up a station keeping orbit and lowered the shields. He illuminated the docking ring and slid out of the chair. Before heading off the bridge he handed his weapons over to one of the other warriors. "I will meet you there."

The man nodded. "I bring doctor." He terminated the connection and a few minutes later they were docked and the hatches opened.

Since the Captain was of a senior rank Vangie the Sholan way. His hand made a fist and came across his chest and was pressed against the opposing shoulder. "Welcome Captain and Yilly's cabin is on the way to the bridge." He took a quick look and they did have sidearms but that appeared to be the extent of it.

Vangie turned and led them down the p-way and opened the door. The warrior he had assigned was helping Billy drink some water and he nodded. "Stay and provide the doctor any assistance he might need." Vangie turned to the doctor. "Once we land I am going to have him taken to the barque where our doctor is for a scan to see what might be going on. Being that he somehow caught a Sholan disease she will be the best to evaluate him and treat him. If you wish to accompany him that is fine."

The doctor and one other moved forward after the captain interpreted for them. He started checking Billy over and called for an IV to be started in case they needed it.

Vangie left them to it and walked out of the cabin and to the bridge. "Captain she is all yours. Warriors you stand relieved and allow them to get to the workstations." He waited till they had moved off the bridge and sat down at the Sholan console. "Yilly made some modifications to the engines so be very careful using them. I am going to contact the barque and let them know that Yilly is sick."

The captain nodded. "Take care of warriors of great importance. I take down, you take care of your captain." It was obvious that the feline had a great deal of respect for Capt. Madlax. Considering how he carried himself he was warrior as well. For Billy to command his respect told the Captain a great deal about him and Billy.

As the Captain started issuing commands in Swiss Vangie contacted the barque and was quickly put threw to medical. "Ah Vangie I was rather expecting a call from you. Satasha is ill as well though I am having some trouble identifying what she might have. Bring Yilly over as soon as we are landed."

The ship started to angle down and within an hour they had finally landed and Vangie had to raise an eyebrow at the level of security that was scattered around the landing area. What rather startled him the most was the colorful uniforms. There were only a few, maybe ten or so at the beginning of the landing area but they looked heavily armed. The swords and bill arms definitely stuck out but he had a sword as well so it wasn't too odd.

Captain Jurgensen turned and looked at Vangie. "We be unloading pirates and bodies. Ship moved to different location for time being. It be guarded at all times and when Captain Madlax recovers of sufficients he will be shown to it." His accent was getting stronger since he was starting to get a bit tired. It had been a long day for him.

Vangie nodded. "Captain the ship is yours. I will have two warriors at the ramp to provide what assistance you might need. I am going to take Yilly to the barque now." He left the bridge at a lope and hurried into Billy's room. The doctor must have given him something since he wasn't sweating as bad and he looked more comfortable.

"Doctor if you and your assistant will follow me I will show you to our doctor." He carefully lifted Billy up and made sure his head wasn't hanging and was resting on his shoulder.

As he was doing that the doctor was about to tell him that he needed to be seen by his staff. One of the warriors who had come over with the captain shook his head. "Lead on Warrior Vangie. I will escort you to the barque."

Vangie nodded and they hurried off the ship and over to the barque. The ambassador was standing there in the door and looked concerned and waved him in. "Keep me updated on his status at all times. I don't care if I am in a meeting if anything changes comm. me."

He nodded as he hurried past and into the ship. It didn't take very long to reach medical and the door opened as he approached. Vangie didn't even wait for the doctor to speak and settled him in the scanner and carefully stripped him down before stepping back.

As the doctor started working Sally hurried up to the Ambassador. "Since Daddy isn't going to introduce you it was asked that I do. If you will follow me please Ambassador." She was dressed in a very nice tabard and soft sandals. She stood tall and walked out.

As they walked out the colorful warriors came to attention after falling in on either side of a red carpet. At the other end was what looked like officials from a number of countries. To be honest she was scared that she was going to screw up something till she felt a gentle touch on the edge of her mind.

*Relax Sally and you will do fine. If needed I will give you additional instructions this way.* The ambassador gave her a slight smile as they walked out. There was the Ambassador, her assistant, several adjutants, and several warriors.

Sally recognized one of her daddy's old friends and sort of headed for him. It had been a while but he was hard to miss. He was about as tall as most of the Sholan's and was heavily muscled. Added to that was a bristling beard he looked pretty impressive. "Good afternoon Commodore. It is good to see you again. Daddy was going to be making the introductions but he relapsed with the illness he had on our friend's ship."

He smiled down at her and gave her a slight nod. "It is good to see you as well Sally and Billy seems to have done a darn good job raising you and your sister. Come talk to me later when you know how your father is doing."

She almost hugged him but instead turned to the others. "Greetings from the Sholan people and government. This is ambassador Teolora and some of her staff. I would introduce you but I don't know the proper greetings."

Commodore Ikarius Demopolus gave her a warm smile. "I can take it from here Sally. Go check on your father and as I said keep me updated on how he is doing. I will come see him when he is feeling better." He turned to the Ambassador and saluted. "It is my pleasure to meet you Ambassador and if you and your retinue will follow us I would appreciate it. I have a room ready for you to settle down and relax for an informal meeting. Not knowing what you might or might not be able to eat or drink I did have a bit of a wide variety of food and drink made available."

She nodded and stepped forward and after nodding to the others she took one of his arms and curled her hand around it. "I am pleased to meet someone who knows Yilly. He is a very smart man even if he seems to enjoy handing out headaches when he starts talking." Her tail was gently swaying and she had a gentle smile on her face.

Ikarius was more than a bit startled when the feline took his arm and started walking with him. "Um, that sounds like Billy. I know every time he tried to explain one of those nightmare equations to me I ended up having one drink to many. So what has he been showing you?" From what he had seen their tech level was significantly more advanced than theirs but knowing Billy he had to check.

She gave him a gentle chuckle. "Nothing top secret to the best of my knowledge. He had come up with an idea how to re-crystallize the hyper tubes and our engineers were curious so he explained it." She shook her head and smiled at the others as well so they didn't feel left out. "Oh, and two things for your information. First Sholan's don't have external sexual differences as humans do. Females tend to be smaller and more slender though. We also have some banding on our tails that indicate we are both adults and females. Second any Sholan with purple on their robes are telepaths. Normally the greeting for a telepath is by touching finger tips."

She felt the tension mount when she said that and gave another gentle smile. "Please don't worry about us trying to read your minds. That is against the telepath code and there are very few telepaths that can connect to an alien mind. Even when they do it is simply to catch surface thoughts. They tend to be used when making treaties, checking the honesty in legal issues and such. Only the worst criminals might get mind scanned though that is rather traumatic for the telepath."

He listened and then nodded. "So if I am right you are a female Sholan and a telepath correct? Should I break out my foil cap to keep you from reading my mind?" Ikarius gave her a sly look when he said that and was rewarded with a laugh.

"Oh goodness you are definitely a friend of Yilly's. When we first took him to medical he told us no probing though I am not sure where that came from. He also asked to be paid in gold plated latinum. We are still trying to figure that out. What is this 'latinum' he asked for?"

There were several snickers before the others caught themselves and became serious again. "First call me Ikarius and second Billy has a really warped sense of humor." He sighed and shook his head. "Billy I am going to get you for this. Okay, the probing thing was something that was started about a hundred and fifty years ago. It references certain species of aliens that don't exist coming to earth and performing medical experiments on humans. There is no such thing as latinum since that was a currency used on a television show from about the same time. I guess you could say he was tweaking your tail or whiskers."

She looked shocked for a moment that Billy had been able to pull a joke like that over them. After a few moments she started snickering and then out right laughing. "He is going to get it when he is better. That evil man. He might want to stay here for a while. The commander has been trying to figure it out."

Ikarius started laughing. "He might not want to stay here. That is not a good way to start out a treaty or first contact." They continued into the building he was aiming for and to the room that had been set up.

~~~

Back on the barque the doctor started the scan after collecting the samples for testing. Over his body on the 3-D screen his organs started showing up as well as vital statistics in Sholan. As they were starting to show she explained what they were seeing and what the data was showing. Eventually the scans finished and so did the tests for the ni'uzu virus and he was negative for that. The antibodies in his blood were working and she hadn't detected any active particles of the virus.

She nibbled on her knuckle for a few moments. Their symptoms didn't make any sense to her. They were showing symptoms but there wasn't any cause she could detect. The doctor finally made a decision. "Put him in the same room as Satasha and strap on a diagnostic monitor. I will set up some commands for it while you are getting him tucked in."

"Follow me please and I will explain what I am doing." She led them to her small office and started typing in commands. "What I am doing is setting the alarm settings on the bracelets to alarm if their vitals go outside certain ranges. It will alert the on call attendant and alert me as well." She rubbed one temple. "I rather wish that we had room for you to stay doctor but we simply don't. If you can stay somewhere close so I can contact you if I have any questions it would be appreciated."

He nodded and decided to ask one question before they left. "Why put them in the same room? If they had different diseases, say something from you and something from us that could be bad."

Desjean contemplated on how to answer the question. "First of they are both telepaths and the contact will help them. Another reason for this is because they have become bond-mates and will sense each other. That will comfort them and keep them from fretting about the other."

He blinked. "Bond-mates? What exactly does that mean?" For all he knew it meant that they had connected telepathically or something odd like that.

She smiled slightly at him. "It is something like a short term marriage contract. Normally it is done for having children but in their case it is because they have come to love each other deeply."