The Air Force Academy wasn't the most secure place there was. There were older students who tended to stand cursory guard duty – more in a manner that would prepare them for the rigors of a well known facet of military life, but really, the cadets ere expected to be on good behavior, and there was little reason to be concerned about someone – or something – actually attacking the school, so there weren't a lot of defenses. Of course, this was the future of the Air Force. So while there weren't a lot of defenses, there were a few. The military wasn't completely trusting, after all.

One set of defenses was in the form of two quasi-retired guard dogs. These were drug dogs; really, brought to the school – complete with handlers – to make sure that no illegal contraband was carried in by students. After all, students were expected to be on their best behavior, but they were young people. And young people didn't always do what they were expected to. The dogs were usually positioned at the gate, and their main capacity was to watch for anything abnormal, and to smell for any drugs.

As twilight was settling on the campus, the two dogs and their handlers were about ready to go off-shift and back to their quarters where they'd enjoy a peaceful dinner before heading off the campus to find a movie or something else interesting to do. Suddenly, both dogs were alert. Their heads turned at the same moment, and their hackles went up immediately. Snarls issued from the bigger of the two, and his head went down in a menacing manner that his handler had never seen before.

"What is it, Hiro?" Both handlers turned the direction the dogs were looking, but there was nothing there. Just an open gate – which would be closed when they went off shift – and a paved lot.

The dog, of course, didn't answer, but his snarl deepened. The handlers looked at each other, completely baffled as the other dog put in his own low growl.

"Wow... something's in the air that they don't like..."

"What do you think it is?"

There was a non-committal shrug.

"Who knows? Might be something they smell coming from outside the fence. Or something from the hills... maybe even a wolf. I hear dogs hate wolves."

"Where'd you hear that?"

"The Discovery Channel."

"Huh, I didn't know that." The guards didn't see anything. There was no perceivable threat to them, their dogs or their charges, and without something in front of them, there was really no way they could be all that alarmed. They were probably just smelling something in the air.

"Come on. Maybe they're hungry. Let's go get something to eat."

The other guard shrugged, and took another look down at his dog. The German Shepherd still had his head low, and his growl was low, but he was now looking somewhere else. Somewhere in the gate instead of beyond it. Whatever was bothering him, it was odd, that was for sure.

"Might as well."

They closed and locked the main gate, and turned the watch over to a group of MPs whose job it was to safeguard the school at night. Then they took their dogs and headed for the barracks, trying to draw the dogs' attention from whatever it was that was that had their hackles still up by offering treats and pats. Eventually, it worked. A few mistrustful looks backwards, and the dogs were led away.

&&

"What kind of creature were those?"

"Will you stop asking me that?"

Every time they'd seen anything strange on this planet – and there were plenty of strange things to see – Ler had asked Kuy what it was. Since he'd been on Earth exactly the same amount of time that his companion had been there, it was a given that Kuy wasn't going to know any more about the inhabitants than Ler.

"They saw us."

"No they didn't. They probably just heard you shuffling your feet. Just walk more quietly."

"I'm not making any noise." The Ashrak looked around him with disdain. There were a lot of humans around – most of them appeared to be younger ones, but none were young enough to be the boy they were looking for. "Where is he?"

Kuy looked down at the device he was holding, and pointed towards a large building with several small windows in the side of it.

"Somewhere in that area." He paused, thinking, then looked over at Ler. "This place is like a training camp for their young. As such, they must send them to their sleep at a certain time. I say we find a place to wait out of the way, and wait for them to go to sleep. Then we can kill him without much hassle, and we won't have to dodge humans on the way in or out. If we do it right."

Ler shrugged. It sounded fine to him. He was tired of walking, anyways, and heartily tired of this crazy world with noisy ground machines, and flying machines, and chattering people. He was ready for a break and some quiet.

"You're the boss."

They walked over to a concealed area by some bushes, against the wall of the dormitory, and there the two crouched down and waited for night to fall and the grounds to grow silent.

&&

They ate dinner in their room. It was a quiet affair – more so than lunch had been. River wasn't feeling all that great; his head was aching – although he wasn't going to tell them that, since he didn't want to look weak in front of Brooks. He was ready to get some sleep, even though it was still early in the day, but he didn't want to be the one to suggest it. So he sat in misery, listening to the pounding of his head as he ate his dinner.

Ian was quiet as well. The New Jersey native was bored being cooped up in the room. He was an active young man and was used to being on the move. The enforced idleness had been fine for a while, but now he was ready for some action. Anything. Bored, bored, bored. He was quiet because he knew that he was getting irritated, and he didn't want to take it out on Shawn and River and ruin what little progress might have been made that day in establishing a friendship. So he sat, and he stewed.

Shawn was quiet because the other two were. He had a fair notion – judging from the look on his face – that River had a headache. Probably brought on by all the questioning he'd gone through during the day. Shawn was determined to let the guy have a chance at some peace and quiet. And that meant not talking. Not even to Ian, who was looking slightly irritated. Of course, he always had that look, Shawn decided, so it was hard to say if it were normal, or if something was bothering him. Either way, Shawn ate in silence to give the two of them some peace and quiet. It wasn't the first time he'd been quiet, after all. And it probably wouldn't be the last.

As evening turned into night, it grew darker and darker. When he was done eating, Shawn started writing a letter to his mother. Ian pulled out a book on Astrophysics and started studying it, and River leaned against his pillows, and closed his eyes. It had been a long day...