Chapter 3

Myka stares frozen in awe alongside her two companions. Anna is the first to break free of the grasp.

"Helena, you were really holding back on me. When you said this was both awesome and inspiring…you didn't use enough emphasis."

Wearing a proud grin, Helena sighs dramatically.

"I said I wasn't lying. These are what's left of an attack fleet which we recovered and repaired. We brought it all back here for safe keeping. Follow me."

Helena strides around the car, leading the three women who walk like patients on lithium. Myka shakes off the effects long enough to ask a question as they pass a large open ramp on the side of the machine.

"You're telling me these are Martian space ships?"

Shaking her head, Helena looks at Myka and everyone as she replies.

"No. That was something I made up…we had a lot of Martian fever going around, so I used it. These are Yamorian Troop ships…at least most of them are. They intended to recover them after the invasion, but I think you all know how that story went. That I didn't make up. Their air filters weren't designed to filter the air as well as they should have, and they were assaulted by our unknowing allies: germs."

Candice chimes in immediately, seemingly all too familiar with H.G. Well's novel.

"They attacked the planet on a global scale! How come we don't know about it?"

Helena shakes her finger at her.

"Another literary freedom. It wasn't our planet I was on when I described the invasion. I was selected by the organization to be an ambassador to that world and we just happened to be there during the invasion. There were over a hundred of us originally…many good people."

Myka doesn't miss the reawakened residual pain from the event, and lets Helena continue without prying.

"When the invasion began, the Famori tried to resist using their technology but it was useless. Many of our people were slaughtered alongside theirs defending the injured and helpless. I…"

Helena chokes momentarily in her story.

"…I was fortunate enough to be in an outlying district when they attacked. They became aware of our presence and began separating us from the local species to study. They did horrible things to us, not caring we were sentient beings like them. I escaped and held out fighting alongside the Famori. Then it happened. Thirty days into the invasion, they were all dead or in full retreat. It was only after we investigated the reasons we won, that we discovered that their air filtration system wasn't capable of filtering out our unique germs and pathogens. So as they got close and started dissecting us, the germs and bacteria within our bodies were released into their ships and began infecting them like the Spanish flu on speed. The Famori were fairly grateful and disgusted by the victory. We immediately learned how to develop lots of ways of fighting disease thanks to them, as they raced to inoculate their population against our bugs and germs. We're still allies with them, but I haven't been there since before I was bronzed."

A young girl's voice calls out from behind the group as they stride into a private break room alongside the cafeteria.

"So you finally showed back up Helena? I thought you were dead."

Helena spins around and the rest of the group follows suit to see a child approximately ten or twelve standing with her arms crossed. Wearing a lab coat and bright red high-top sneakers, her brilliant silver shoulder-length hair reflects the overhead florescent light. Barely five feet tall, the child caries herself as if she's carrying years of weight on her shoulders. Helena looks at the girl in disbelief.

"Doctor Montgomery? What happened to your hair?"

With a cute angry scowl she grits her teeth and punches a tall Air Force colonel in the ribs as he passes. Fighting the pain, he tries to contain his laughter as he rushes towards the nearest elevator.

The girl yells at him as she explains to Helena.

"Some ASS told me it was all the rage here now, and everyone has silver hair, and that I should learn to blend in! Bastard! It'll only wear off in like forty or fifty YEARS! I know where you sleep Jim! This is hardly over!"

She stops yelling only after the elevator doors fully shut. She pulls at her short metallic silver locks as she speaks.

"See what I have to deal with around here? It's good to see you again Helena."

They hug and Helena introduces the team she brought.

"This beautiful raven-haired woman is…"

Dr. Montgomery cuts her off.

"One Anastasia Krylenko. Your reputation precedes you very well. I read about the blood diamond market you singlehandedly brought down. Good work. She is too modest to admit it, but people were mining a rare diamond which sucked the blood out of anyone who owned it. It took a small miracle to destroy them all. The defense community wanted to syphon them into weapons, but she chose the morale high ground over any financial gain."

With a subtle smile she shrugs.

"How many trillions does a girl need to have before enough is enough."

As Candice rolls her eyes to Anna's response, the doctor turns to her.

"And this should be Candice Flannery, genius extraordinaire. There's no code she's can't crack, or amount of data she can't sift through to find a link."

She too shrugs and looks around nervously from the attention.

"I do what I can."

Helena turns to Myka, and lets the doctor continue.

"And this leaves us with Special Agent Myka Bering. The one person who has done so much work to protect this world of ours that no one has or ever will hear about. Unlike Anna, Miss Bering's work with the warehouses has and will stay above top secret. From what little I have heard, I'm impressed. I'm impressed with your entire team Helena. You did well. There's a thirty day isolation/decontamination period before we go, so let's get everyone inoculated and into their living area."

Leading them down corridor, she swipes her card at an elevator entrance. Taking them inside, she selects the 4th sub-floor and then swipes her card against the control panel to approve the floor selection. The elevator moves gently downwards, sealing their fates for the future.