Chapter twenty-eight: the attack

"Where are you? I can't see you…" Amelia was running in road of yellow soil; awfully worried about her children who were screaming. The voice of her husband seemed to be leading her towards a bonfire atop a hill surrounded by a circle of rectangular stones. When she saw somebody dancing around the fire she began to run faster but when she was about to find out who it was, she woke up.

She was breathing agitatedly, sweating and feeling her legs tired. She sat down on the edge of the bed and buried her face in her hands. "Why?" she told herself. "I can't stop having that dreaming, why, WHY?"

She stopped thinking it was just a nightmare long ago; there was something definitively weird going on and she couldn't keep ignoring it. But what could it mean? She had tried to find an answer and the only thing she could think of was that something was about to happen; something that will affect her family. Could it be the war? No, it was much more than that, a threat even worse.

It didn't matter how she analyzed it, the dream looked like some kind of premonition. But it was impossible because nobody can predict the future, though she wasn't that convinced anymore. The possibility started to make sense, even if it sounded ridiculous. If that was so, what could she do about it? Perhaps deep down she knew but she refused to accept it. Suddenly, she remembered a part of the dream she hadn't had before, another voice whispering: "Trust the stranger."

She stood up; while she was putting her robe on she opened the curtains and discovered why the room was darker than usual. The sky was cloudy and she could hear the wind roaring outside. She looked at the time in a watch, it was too early and the children were probably still waiting for the airbus. Delbert wasn't in the room so she presumed he was already having breakfast. She yawned for the last time and went to the bathroom to get ready before going downstairs.

She didn't find Delbert or her children in the dining room; she only found a single plate, a cup and enough food for one person. She sat at the table and while she was pouring coffee in her cup she saw a note from the Doctor below it. She unfolded it and started to read.

"Sorry I didn't wake you up but it seemed to me like you could use some more sleep. See you at dinner.

I love you.

P.S. rest a bit more if you're planning to go to the city again.

Kisses."

Amelia smiled and put the note in the pocket of her robe. She'd have preferred to have her bad dream interrupted but that would have been a bad idea since she spent the whole night watching her children sleep. Besides, the last few days she had been preparing everything for the voyage because their vacations were practically about to begin. There was a lot of work to be done and if she expected to be ready by then, she needed all the rest she could get to restore her energy. However, the endeavor she put to the task was a lot more than she actually needed. She traveled constantly to the city and the spaceport to fix even slightest detail, which by the end of the day left her completely worn out.

Nobody understood why this voyage was so terribly important for her. Maybe it wasn't but if she didn't distract her mind she would go crazy. Her continuous quest to find something to do systematically exhausted all the tasks she could think of. Preparing their meals was the only job Helen had in the mansion because the rest of her responsibilities Amelia insisted to take care of them. When the Captain was in the Armada she always had little tolerance with the members of her crew who were lazing around. She felt a bit ashamed for being harsh on them because now she knew first hand that laziness becomes a powerful temptation when all is said and done.

After Amelia finished her breakfast, she went to living room and when she saw her children' backpacks, she wondered where they were. It wasn't long before she heard their voices coming from the backyard. She opened the door and found Helen in the porch.

The housekeeper immediately turned around and smiled. "Good morning Mrs. Doppler."

"Good morning Helen."

"H-how are you feeling today?" the Zirrelian cheerfully inquired.

"Perfectly fine, thanks for asking." Amelia answered. She barely had set a foot outside when she shivered with cold. "It's f-f-freezing out here, what are my children d-doing in this weather?"

Helen's expression changed from joyous to worried. "T-they wanted to continue the m-match of Sky Croquet they st-ta-tarted yesterday. Young Victoria s-said something about the weather ma-ma-making it more interesting, but don't worry! I didn't l-let them out until they p-put on clothes warm eno-no-nough."

"Good." The Captain said watching her children.

"S-should I call them back?" despite Helen's clothes were also warm, she was trembling a lot because her specie was susceptible to cold and apparently she had been there minding the children for a long time.

"That won't be n-necessary, Helen, I'll watch them for you. Go inside and have a hot drink." the Felinid suggested.

"Thanks Mrs. Doppler. W-wait here for a second." she quickly went through the doorway and a couple of minutes later she came back to bring her a sweater.

"You are very thoughtful, Helen, thank you." the Captain said.

"I'm here to serve you." the housekeeper bowed and left.

Amelia went down some small steps and headed for the place where her children were playing. When they saw her they waved at her. Victoria and Rose were sitting on a stone bench while Derek and Katherine were holding mallets and riding hover boards which were floating a few feet from the ground.

"Hi mom." Victoria said.

"Good morning dearest mother." Rose responded.

Their mother gave each one a kiss. "Having fun?"

Her daughters exchanged glances.

"Yeah."

"Absolutely."

"I'm glad to hear it." the Captain answered.

Derek and Katherine landed the boards softly; they took off the harnesses they had in their legs and removed their helmets. Then, they greeted their mother and Katherine added warm hug.

After this affective display they remained looking at Amelia who arched an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Can we keep playing, please?" Victoria asked her.

"If I'm not mistaken the airbus will arrive in about fifteen minutes." Derek mentioned.

Their mother had the feeling they would use the puppy eyes any second. "Okay, carry on."

"Then it's your turn, Victoria." her brother told her. She and Katherine got on the boards and took off immediately.

Derek went toward Amelia and pulled gently her sleeve. "Would you let me get rid of this? I'm suffocating." his sisters had sweaters but he also had gloves, scarf, earmuffs and a woolen hat.

She was reluctant to let him but the poor child seemed really uncomfortable. "Alright but leave the scarf on."

The little Canid sighed but he knew this was the best he could get.

Then the Captain spent the rest of the time watching Victoria and Rose. "So this is Sky Croquet, I didn't remember you had this game."

"We neither," Derek commented. "Two years ago Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jim gave it to us, but you put it in the attic saying that we were still too young to use the boards."

"Oh, and now you're not that young anymore, is that right?" she responded.

"Not according to this." He loosened his scarf and took out of his sweater the medallion of the great-great-grandmother Wilfreda. It appeared that they had taken very serious the responsibility she had bestowed on them.

Amelia watched carefully the game and after a while she had to admit it looked fun.

Katherine noticed her mother's curiosity. "Would you like to give it a try, mom?"

"Maybe, how do you play it?"

The little Felinid turned toward her brother. "Derek?"

"It's actually very simple. Obviously is like normal croquet but this is played using hover boards, floating hoops and flying balls. You have to make yours go through as many hoops as possible hitting it with your mallet. Another crucial difference is that you can control the trajectory of the ball with a little antenna in the head of the mallet. You just have to point at the ball with it after the hit and you'll be able to move it in any direction. You'll have to be quick and accurate, though, because the ball loses speed gradually."

At that moment a gust of cold wind blew and Amelia embraced herself. "Isn't a bit c-cold outside to be playing?"

Her son sighed. "Of course but Victoria insisted."

"Yesterday Derek and I won three times in a row against her and Rose." Katherine commented, apparently amused by the thought. "She's very competitive and I guess it wasn't funny for her to be beaten by Derek who doesn't even practice sports."

The little Canid folded his arms. "This game doesn't depend on physical strength but on physics, which I'm particularly well-versed even if I do say it myself."

"And that makes you a formidable opponent." his sister praised him. "I'm serious, Derek, you should think about joining a juvenile Sky Croquet league."

Derek drew half a smile on his face. "Naaah, this game is fun and all but intellectually speaking is not quite a challenge for me. You on the other hand seem to have a natural talent, no wonder Victoria was so persistent to have you in her team today."

Katherine blushed a bit and Amelia was touched seeing her children complimenting each other.

Victoria suddenly landed beside them. "Who's winning?"

"Your team." Derek answered unenthusiastic and without checking the sheet with the score.

"So, are you going to try it, mom?" Katherine inquired.

"Yes, good idea," Rose said excited getting down of the board. "if you like the game maybe you and father could make another team."

"Show us, mom," Victoria asked her handing her the mallet. "I'm sure you have skill for this too."

Amelia never let an opportunity to try something new but she was a little doubtful because Derek made the game sound more complicated than it was. Nevertheless, if she learned to play it, that would be another way to spend quality time with her children. That's why she grabbed the mallet; put the ball at the height they told her to and hit it. Perhaps she should have asked first how much strength she had to use because it went flying like a cannonball. They began to give her instructions but since they were talking at the same time she couldn't understand them.

"Look out!" her son warned her.

The Captain tried to maneuver the ball but she couldn't control it in time and it flew over the wall of the external terrain. Unexpectedly, the ball crashed against something that made a metallic sound and fell to the ground. The children looked at one another surprised which made her realize that wasn't a normal movement of the ball.

"I'll get it." the little Canid volunteered and he headed for the back gate.

Then a lightning parted the sky and for a brief second Amelia could discern a transparent shape floating around the place she was looking at. It wasn't the first time she saw something like that, yet she couldn't believe her eyes. It was the same phenomenon she witnessed years ago during the attack to the convoy where she lost her sister; something was out there using stealth technology!

"DEREK, GET BACK!" she shouted.

He stopped right away because he knew too well that tune but he felt confused since he hadn't done anything to deserve a scolding. "What's wrong, mom?"

The Captain didn't need to explain herself because at that moment Helen appeared in the porch. "Children, the airbus is approaching!"

"Go inside, my little darlings, and get ready for school." their mother ordered them. "Derek, follow your sisters!"

He pointed at the gate. "But what about the…?"

"I'll find it, just go." she interrupted him.

The children gathered around the housekeeper who gave them their backpacks, she escorted them to the airbus and watched them leave before returning to work. She lost track of the time waiting for Amelia to come back from the terrain behind the mansion. When the Captain finally entered in the living room, she looked quite upset, even though she had in her hand the ball she apparently was looking for. Helen was starting to be really worried for the Captain; lately her behavior had been very unusual and every day her stress increased.

A fact that seemed to make the situation worse was the unexpected visit Amelia had the day before. The housekeeper felt weird announcing the presence of an Admiral requesting to talk to Mrs. Doppler in private. She guided Mr. Jones to the Captain's study but five minutes later she was asked to accompany him to the exit. Whatever they discussed made the Felinid be angry for the rest of the day.

Helen knew that Mrs. Doppler was tired physically and mentally, if she continued with that rhythm, she would collapse for sure. That's why she came up with a plan to help her. First she served her a cup of milk to calm her down and then she began to talk nonchalantly while she was preparing the dinner (occasionally giving Amelia tips for cooking). It was during that chat that Helen mentioned the new spa they just opened in the city. The Zirrelian somehow managed to get an invitation for two people to try their facilities for free.

Amelia immediately figured out what Helen was up to when she asked her if she wanted to pay them a visit. The Captain would have probably said no knowing how busy she was. However, her nightmare, her other preoccupations and the recent event in the backyard were driving her nuts. The idea (a bit inappropriate for her taste) of spending a whole morning being spoilt sounded too good to waste it, so she agreed to go. The most difficult part for her was choosing the right attire because she had no idea what to wear in such a place, after a while she finally chose sports clothes. In the meantime, the housekeeper broke her own record finishing all the housework and in less than an hour they both were at the spa checking in.

The only word Amelia could use to describe Helen's ideas was wisdom. She would nave never thought that a good massage would work wonders on her. Some minutes in a Jacuzzi made her worries vanish like the bubbles that burst on the surface of the water. Hot springs, saunas, beauty treatments and all kind of services that she considered rather excessive, proved to be the best medicine to put an end to her stress. She felt like her energy and enthusiasm, which she didn't know she had lost until then, returned with more intensity than ever.

She still couldn't help but thinking of everything that had happened, however, those thoughts no longer had the same influence on her. In the past the Captain was always able to control her feelings and never let that anything discouraged her (ability Katherine inherited). She didn't understand why this time her thoughts affected her in the way they did, maybe because of how quick and the quantity of troubles she had to deal with. Whatever the reason was, she knew now that finding time to get her strength back was almost as important as finding a solution to the problems. When Amelia and Helen left the spa, the Captain thanked sincerely the housekeeper who was relieved and happy of being helpful.

It was a good thing they both were in good mood because they would need it to stand the traffic. They were traveling on the ship Amelia and her husband bought several years ago for long trips with the children, roomy enough for six people but too big to get past the jammed streets. Helen still had to do some chores but despite she offered to take the Captain back to the mansion, she refused to allow the housekeeper do an unnecessary travel since she was in no hurry. She gladly accompanied her because it was more like tour around the city. Not even the thunder and lightning that were announcing storm would have been enough to depress her.

It was well into the afternoon when they arrived at the bookstore of Delbert's friend Roger to pick up some books the Doctor had ordered. It was going to be a quick errand so Helen asked Amelia to wait for her in the ship. That's what she did for a few minutes but after twenty she began to wonder what was taking her so long. She got out to stretch her legs and calm down the slight pain on her left side. She hadn't told anyone but sometimes when she remained seated for too long, the rib she fractured on treasure planet bothered her. That injury had healed long ago so she supposed the pain was in her mind, though she couldn't imagine what could be causing it.

She didn't feel comfortable either knowing that for the last minutes a creature of nasty appearance had been staring at her from across the street. She had a bad feeling when he hid after hearing a patrol nearby, so she looked at the window trying to spot Helen but she was nowhere in sight. She approached the door determined to enter but when she tried to open it she realized it was locked. She knocked several times and looked at the window again but she got no answer. Suddenly, her senses started to sharpen because she felt her surroundings were disturbingly quiet. It was then that she heard voices in the adjacent alley and got close to investigate. When she turned in the corner she saw a Mantavor and a Tuskrus, to her shock and dismay one of them was carrying Helen unconscious. With feline reflexes Amelia stealthily approached them without being noticed and hid behind a huge empty box.

"Why did you bring her? I told you to wait upstairs."

"I'm sick of waiting. Besides, we're gonna take her with us, who cares where we have her?"

"What if someone sees us? Stop clowning around and do what you're told. I'll meet the others here."

"What about the other one? She was supposed to stay in the mansion, what is she doing here?"

"I don't know and I don't care, we were only hired to capture the Zirrelian, not to ask questions. The leader will deal with her."

Amelia quickly understood the danger she was in. She hadn't had to face a situation like that in a long time but she had to do something or those bandits might escape taking Helen with them. However, she was in a serious disadvantage because she was alone, unarmed and without knowing how many crooks she would have to fight. The first thing she had to do was to find a place to hide because the creature that had been watching her was probably an accomplice in charge of keeping an eye on her. And she was right, seconds later she heard a voice coming from the corner.

"She went this way, quick!"

The Captain was trapped, if she came out of her hiding place, the ones who had Helen would see her but if she stayed there, the others would find her. She had to think fast and the only thing she could come up with was getting in the box hoping they didn't search it. She put the lid on and remained quiet paying attention to the external sounds.

"Where is she?" someone said in a harsh voice.

"TC18 just took her upstairs."

"I want to see her!"

"O-of course, f-follow me."

The alley was filled with footsteps and when it went silent; Amelia carefully removed the lid and came out after making sure no one was there. It was unbelievable that such a hiding place would be so effective, though she wasn't sure if she had to be happy that the bandits were such fools. She saw a fire escape at the end of the alley and went up to the first floor. Since the fire door could only be opened from inside, she climbed a drainpipe until she reached the ceiling. Once there, she went toward the nearest skylight and took a look. She spotted the bandit who had taken Helen and right in front of him there was another one wearing a camouflage uniform. He was a Karzarius; a being that looked like a shark, talking in the same harsh voice she had heard before.

"YOU IDIOTS! How come you lost sight of Captain Amelia?"

"B-but Leader, we didn't see anyone in the alley. TC31 was supposed to watch her."

The enraged voice of the leader made the room shake. "He didn't think you'd be so blind to let her escape." when he saw the other one was about to say something, he glared at him. "SHUT UP! I don't want to hear excuses; you stay here and guard these two. Everyone, search the streets and the bookstore; she couldn't have gone far… well, what are you waiting for? SCRAM!"

Everyone rushed to the door as if they had been whipped. When the guard was alone, the Captain took a drabloon out of her pocket; she opened the skylight slowly and dropped it inside. The bandit immediately grabbed his sword and looked everywhere. He saw something shining on the floor and when he bent down to pick it up, she fell on him; leaving him unconscious.

"Don't mind me, I'm just dropping by." Amelia said grinning. She waited to see if somebody heard the ruckus, then she closed the door and blocked it with a metal chair. She seized the sword, went toward the armchair where the housekeeper was lying and patted gently her tentacle. "I'm sorry Helen, this is my fault." She mentally apologized. Suddenly, she was startled when she heard a soft banging coming from behind a desk. She grasped the sword, went over there carefully and found Henry, the employee who worked in the bookstore, tied and gagged. She quickly knelt down beside him to cut the rope but before removing the gag, she asked him to be quiet.

"Thanks but, how are you?" the little Zandarian said in a soft voice.

"I'm Amelia Doppler." she introduced herself. "You must know my husband."

"The Doctor?"

The Felinid nodded.

"Those thugs broke in this morning." he declared rather scared. "They tied me up and left me here, I thought they were going to rob the place but I overheard they just wanted to catch a Zirrelian woman, is that her?"

"Yes." she answered without taking her eyes off of the door.

"They seem to be looking for you too, who are they and why are they trying catch you?" Henry inquired puzzled.

"I wish I know but this is not the time to find out." the Captain replied. "We need to get out of here before they are back." she stood up and looked in every direction. "Your name is Henry, right? Well, Mr. Henry do you know another way out?"

"The fire escape." he answered point at a spot she overlooked. "The door is hidden behind that bookcase because I moved it to clean it; they attacked me before I had time to put it back."

An exit the bandits forgot to secure? It appeared that the good luck was on her side that day but she knew that could change any moment. They both moved the bookcase as silently as they could and went toward Helen afterwards.

"Can you carry her?" she asked the little Zandarian.

"Don't worry ma'am; I have practice carrying boxes full of books."

Suddenly, they heard footsteps on the other side of the blocked door and Henry almost had a heart attack when he felt someone trying to open it.

"Why is this locked? Open up, TC18." the leader demanded.

The Captain and the employee took the housekeeper and ran to the exit. Once out, she used the sword to jam the fire door. The weather seemed to be playing against them because it had started to rain and that made the steps of the fire escape very slippery. They had to risk running into someone in the alley because it was terrifying to hear the angered screams of the leader when he found out his prisoners had run away. They finally managed to reach the alley safe and sound but before they could get away, the fire door was violently opened with a shot. They were too exposed and they would be seen if they didn't find a hiding place. Luckily for them, the door of the storage wasn't locked so she pulled him inside.

"What are you doing? We just got out!" Henry exclaimed scared.

"They're looking for us outside; we might have a chance if we stay here for now." Amelia explained him. Then, she hushed him putting a finger on his lips because she could hear someone approaching. She looked around and made him a sign to hide behind some piles of boxes. Honestly, she didn't think that would be effective again but apparently it worked when seconds later two bandits crossed the storage and went out without noticing them. A tumult broke out in the alley and for several distressing minutes they paid close attention to every sound. She knew they couldn't continue like that, sooner or later they wouldn't have enough strength to carry Helen and someone could have the "brilliant" idea of searching the bookstore again.

She waited until everything was relatively calmed to venture outside. She took a look in the alley and since the coast was clear, she headed for the corner to investigate. One bandit was guarding her ship while six more were patrolling the street.

"Blast it! It's a dead end." she sighed frustrated inwardly. Who would have believed that she would have to confront such a precarious situation and right when she thought she had finally relaxed? She returned to the storage and found Henry trying to wake up the housekeeper. He looked up hoping to hear good news but her face was telling otherwise.

"There's no way out," she informed him frowning. "at least not for all of us."

The little Zandarian arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Amelia put hand on Helen's forehead. "I'm their target, so I'm going to made them go after me. I want you to wait here and when you feel no one's around, take Helen to a hospital."

"WHAT? That's just crazy!" he exclaimed. "There must be another way. Maybe if we stay here…"

"Don't argue, just do it!" the Captain ordered him.

Henry couldn't believe she was willing to sacrifice for them. But it didn't matter how selfless and brave she was, he couldn't allow the wife of his friend the Doctor to risk her life. He tried frantically to think of any other choice and it was then that he remembered something that fear probably didn't let him before.

"Wait!" he stopped her grabbing her arm. "The building next door is an annex of the bookstore. There's an entrance in the alley and if we hide there, they won't find us."

The said entrance was in front of the storage and the Captain had considered it already as possible escape route. She dismissed it because it was a security door and it looked impossible to open, at least by force. Amelia didn't want them to risk being seen but frankly that plan sounded safer than hers so she accepted. They carefully crossed the alley with Helen and they stopped near the security door. Henry immediately typed a password in the panel on the wall but since it was also an electric door, it made a loud noise when it opened. The little Zandarian slapped his forehead because he had forgotten that was going to happen.

They didn't lose time and took Helen inside before closing the door. They remained there waiting to hear voices or footsteps but apparently they had outwitted the bandits temporarily, so Henry breathed relived. The Captain checked her surroundings, even though it was almost completely dark her eyes hadn't problems to discern that she was in a massive room without windows and with large shelves full to the brim with stationery.

"Is there a holo-transmitter around?" she asked him.

"There's one upstairs in the office." he answered.

Amelia found a swivel chair with wheels and they put the housekeeper there to transport her easily. They decided to keep the lights off but Henry didn't need them because he knew well the way. The place was a labyrinth of hallways and with certain difficulty he led them to the stairs.

"Stay here with her." the Felinid asked him. She went up and crossed a small metal bridge where everything in the room could be seen. She should have predicted that she would find the door of the office locked but for some reason she thought it would be opened. After scolding herself briefly for her mistake, she turned around and walked back to find something to help her open it. She stopped abruptly in her track when she heard the noise of the electric door; she looked over the handrail and saw the bandits entering in the building. How they figured out the password was the least of her concerns now that they had nowhere to run. But Amelia was already tired of running away; the time to fight her enemies had come.

The lights were turned on and one of the bandits saw her in the bridge. "There she is!" he exclaimed firing his weapon.

The Captain quickly jumped off to dodge the shot and landed on a shelf.

The voice of the leader resounded in the room. "What are you doing, blockhead? We need her alive, use the long-range stun guns."

Amelia took advantage of this to locate the fuse box, she seized the first heavy object she could find and threw it with all her strength. With incredible accuracy she hit the box, causing a short circuit and the lights were cut.

"Nice try, Cap'n, but you better surrender," the leader warned her. "this is the only exit and you can't beat us."

"Oh really, why don't you come here and find out, wuss?" she dared him.

The leader growled and turned toward his underlings. "You four take the right, you three the left, you and you stay with me watching the exit, the rest of you surround the building."

The bandits began to walk in the hallways slowly using the faint light coming from the alley to find their way. They split to cover more ground but soon they realized they weren't dealing with an ordinary woman. They really didn't know who was chasing whom and they were frightened feeling as if a predator was stalking them. One by one the bandits were falling. It was such the fear among them that they spared Amelia some trouble when they accidentally stunned one their fellows. The leader couldn't stop insulting his incompetent underlings. Unfortunately, what she was afraid of happened, she heard Henry screaming and saw when the bandits took him with Helen to the entrance.

"Alright, Cap'n, I'm tired of this stupid cat and mouse game." the leader said with a wicked smile. "We have your friends, get out of there immediately or they will suffer the consequences."

Amelia surprised everyone by jumping in front of him from atop a shelf. "I should have known that scum like you would have to resort to this kind of cowardly trick."

"Shut up and drop the stun gun." he demanded.

She threw it brusquely to the floor. The bandits made her knelt down to tie her hands and when they were putting a gag on her mouth, the leader smiled with satisfaction. They did the same to Helen and Henry before taking everyone out of the building. The rain had started to become a drizzle and the sound of the thunders was fading away. In the street outside the alley Amelia could see another ship ready to depart. What dreadful destiny awaited her?, was there something she could do to avert it? She was feeling like that occasion on treasure planet when she was captured by pirates, only this time neither Delbert nor Jim were there to help her. As she approached the ship her future began to look bleaker, like someone who is dragged before the executioner. Suddenly, a man wearing a mask and a cloak appeared in the corner and the bandits stopped.

The leader stepped forward. "Who the heck are you?"

The masked one didn't move but they saw someone falling behind him and they realized it was one of their fellows. They pulled out their weapons and began to shoot at the stranger. They were sure their shots were accurate but inexplicably he didn't fall to the ground and when they stopped to reload he pounced on them. They tried to fight back but he was too fast and he was using martial arts; with punches and kicks that knocked them out instantaneously. The leader put his arm around Amelia's neck and started to move back. In matter of seconds the masked one finished the whole gang and focused his attention on the one who had Amelia. He threw one of the bandits at the feet of the Karzarius to show him what was going to happen if he didn't let go his hostage. However, he refused to acknowledge defeat; he got rid of his weapon, he took out a stick of dynamite and tossed it in front of the stranger.

"If you don't want us to blow into pieces you better get out of my way." the leader threatened him showing menacing the detonator.

Amelia was absolutely convinced that he was just bluffing. That scalawag was probably too scared to sacrifice himself; much less after all he had to do to capture her. That's why she stamped on his foot and while he was busy screaming in pain, she kicked the detonator. The masked one caught it in the air but it was already activated and a little screen on the stick showed a countdown of five seconds. He immediately picked up the dynamite and executed an incredible jump to the ceiling. The entire alley shook with the explosion; the leader carried the Captain on his shoulder and ran toward the ship. When he was about to get in, the stranger fell from the ceiling, he stood up slowly with his cloak still on fire as if nothing had happen. That image made the leader's hair stand on end, whoever the masked one was it wasn't from this world. The Karzarius released Amelia and fled in the ship.

The drizzle that still persisted eventually put out the fire on him. The stranger removed the mask and the cloak to reveal who… or what he was: an armored robot. The arm he used to grab the stick was no longer there but that didn't keep him from untying Amelia and helping her stand up. She was still a bit dizzy because of the explosion but at least everything she just witnessed made sense now. She returned right away to the alley to find Helen and Henry, followed by the robot. She checked the housekeeper's pulse because she had been unconscious for too long.

The robot knelt beside them; illuminated the Zirrelian with his eyes and after a few seconds he spoke. "Scan: terminated. Status of vital signs: stable. Diagnostic: anesthetic chemical detected."

The Captain felt somewhat less worried knowing that Helen was just sedated. Poor Henry wasn't so lucky, with him they used a stun gun and he would be unconscious for hours. The Felinid carried the housekeeper and the robot took care of Henry; she didn't trust him completely but if wanted to hurt them he wouldn't have saved them. They took them inside the bookstore and settled them in armchairs. Amelia thought of calling the constables but it wasn't necessary because she could hear sirens in the distance, probably attracted for the explosion. Suddenly, she noticed her hands were slightly shaking, she could barely believe she had survived such a horrible experience and she still didn't know what was going on. She didn't expect the robot to have all the answers but maybe he could explain what he was doing there.

She frowned and folded her arms. "Who are you?"

He just remained immobile staring at her.

"Who sent you?" the Captain insisted.

Again, no answer.

"How did you know we were in trouble?" Amelia was starting to get angry. Apparently his ears were damaged but he wasn't fooling her not even for a second. "Stop pretending, alright? I know you're not a simple robot, you're an avatar; you're not programmed, someone controls you using a mental interface."

The eyes of the machine seemed to express surprise.

"What's more, I know you're an officer," she continued. "those movements you used against the bandits are only taught in the Interstellar Academy."

"You are clever woman," he finally answered. "but there's no time to waste, this is not over yet." he lifted Helen, carried her on his shoulder and quickly headed for the main entrance.

"HEY, where are you taking her?" she said running after the robot.

He put the housekeeper in the back seat of Amelia's ship. "Take her with you, that way you'll be sure that she's alright. I'll take care of the Zandarian."

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the blazes is going on!" she exclaimed furiously.

"I suggest you leave now if you don't want to spend the rest of the day being interrogated by the police." he advised her.

The Felinid glared at him. "Didn't you hear what I just said? I want answers!"

"You were the primary target," the metal man responded turning around to look at her. "if this operation failed, they would go after the secondary target. Your children are in danger."

The Captain's reaction was almost instantaneous. She didn't care if it was true or not, she got in the ship with a leap, started the engine and left at full speed. How could this day become such a nightmare? She could hardly concentrate in the road; all she could think of was her little ones. She wanted to hold them in her arms like never in her life. She didn't even know what she was going to do if she had to fight against more bandits. It was best for them not to find out what she was capable of if they tried to take her children away from her.