Once Karina had finished with the undead turtle monstrosity, Amahle and the Adaro female approached.

“Now that we’ve had a moment to relax and think, I wanted to thank you for helping us out,” she declared. “Other than being from an aircraft carrier, we don’t even know who you people are. But we weren’t so arrogant as to think we didn’t need your help.”

Reece accepted her thanks with a nod.

“You have the thanks of the Adaro as well, drylander,” added the Adaro girl. Now that she was closer, she was small and lithe, with the narrow hips and small perky breasts of a teenager but carried herself as an adult. I look of unease crossed her face for a moment. “Do you know of any remedy for the corruption? My mate was bitten and doesn’t have long. Please, we’d be...no, I’d be in your debt.”

“If it were within our power, we’d help him,” said Reece, the empathy he felt for the poor girl making him suddenly forlorn. “Unfortunately, we still haven’t discovered how to stop or reverse the process. No one we’ve ever come across has ever survived the bite, and we’ve all lost countless good people to it. I’m so sorry.”

The girl merely nodded in grim understanding; her face downcast as she processed the heartbreaking news. She turned, head hung low, and returned to her mate who was laying on a grassy spot within the large field, grunting in pain as the zombie’s bite slowly killed him.

Some people turned in seconds, others took hours. They still didn’t understand why. Unfortunately, now wasn’t the time to try and figure it out. Aika had joined him and put her hand on his chest, giving him a sad but understanding smile, one that didn’t make it to her eyes.

Hank and Bjorn both sat in the field, resting as two comrades in arms. Dmitri joined them. Ciera went to the Adaro female and comforted her as she grieved. Her mate was still alive but was no longer conscious. It was only a matter of time before he turned. Reece turned away and gently put his forehead on Aika’s, finding some small comfort in the touch of her skin. He only lingered a moment. There were still unanswered questions and time was of the essence. Pulling away, he grabbed his radio and pressed the talk button.

“Pasha, what’s your situation? Over.” Reece called out, silently hoping for a quick reply.

Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait long. “ZZzzzzt... this is Pasha,” came the phoenix’s reply. “We’ve neutralized the ahh...giant...uh...centipede thing and are assisting the Madagascans where we can. The rest of the fleet has arrived and we’re taking it to the Z’s. This may be a bit optimistic, but I think we should have them mopped up within the hour. Over.”

“That’s great news,” replied Reece, a little joy creeping back into his melancholy mood. “We’ve cleared out two prongs of their attack, but not without losses to the Madagascans and the Adaro forces... long story. Anyhow, do you think we could get picked up once you’re finished? The locals have a very dangerous mode of transportation and I think we’ve all risked our lives enough for one day. Over.”

“Zzzt... Sure thing,” replied Pasha. “Give us about twenty minutes. If something comes up, I’ll radio you back. Over and out.”

They all headed away from the remains of the battle and the terrible smell of decaying corpses to rest a few minutes before Pasha showed up with the Phoenix. No one was much in the mood for talking. Most of the Adaro had retreated to the ocean, leaving the Adaro girl to catch up once she had ‘taken care’ of her mate. Reece saw her heading towards him, being half-carried by Ciera.

The girl’s face seemed pale, her eyes squinting as she frowned. Ciera’s eyes were glaring at Reece through narrowed eyes, her face flushed, and her free hand curled into a fist. Once they had reached Reece, Aika and Karina made themselves scarce, some silent understanding passing between them.

Reece’s narrowed eyes popped wide open as the Adaro girl collapsed on top of him, curling up into a ball in his lap, her body wracked by sobs. He tilted his head and furrowed his brow at Ciera, seeking answers to the girl’s odd behavior. Ciera just shook her head, pressing her lips together and clenching her jaw.

“All of the other Adaro left her to take care of her mate. Apparently, the Adaro aren’t known for their empathy,” she tried to explain, an edge to her voice. “Something to do with spending ninety percent of their time underwater, where it’s difficult to communicate or share emotions. But I don’t understand what’s so hard about comforting someone who is hurting. It just pisses me off. As for her, I don’t know. Once she feels like talking, just ask her.”

“Fair enough,” Reece responded as he absently stroked the distraught girl’s hair soothingly, trying to give some small comfort to the Adaro girl. She just laid in his lap, her sobs slowly subsiding, their bodies slowly warming together. Reece had a bad feeling about the whole situation. His troubled thoughts were mercifully interrupted by the sound and wind of the Phoenix as it landed in the field a couple of dozen meters away. By this time, Reece noticed that the girl had fallen asleep on his legs. Carefully, he slipped his arms under her and lifted her to his chest.

She seemed to wake up long enough to look into his eyes and give him a bittersweet smile. Her eyes were mesmerizing, her pupils, dark slits from top to bottom. Around them, sea-green irises flecked with gold and silver stared at him before her lids fluttered shut again.

Reece swept the dark green hair from her face, still wet from river water, and tinged with blood. She was beautiful, but alien in her appearance, and from what Reece had seen and heard, her culture was just as alien. She was unusually light for her size and Reece was able to easily stand up while still holding her. While carrying the Adaro girl towards the Phoenix, Reece passed by Amahle.

“Hey, would you mind accompanying us to wherever home base is?” he asked the exhausted woman. “We understand that we may be able to help each other. Beyond that, we have a common enemy, and it would be nice to have someone familiar to make introductions. So, what do you say? Up for a flight?”

“In that thing?” she replied incredulously. “I’ve seen your pilot maneuver that thing, and you said that I was crazy.”

“You have nothing to worry about,” Reece replied, attempting to calm her. “He may be the best pilot on the planet.”

She narrowed her eyes skeptically. “Alright, I’ll trust you. We owe you at least that.”

“You have my thanks,” replied Reece. “Shall we?”

Amahle said something to one of the other Madagascans, a tall man with dreads. He nodded and she rejoined Reece on his way to the Phoenix. Once aboard, he found a place to set the Adaro girl and indicated Amahle sit next to him. He propped up the still unconscious girl and with Amahle’s help, strapped her into a seat. Then he strapped himself in, showing Amahle how it was done.

“Is everybody all set?” asked Pasha from the cockpit.

Everyone answered in the affirmative and within a minute, the Phoenix was airborne.

“Okay, where to?” asked Pasha.

“We’re located near Antananarivo,” answered Amahle. “I’ll direct you once we get close.”

“Alright lady,” replied Pasha. “Why don’t you come up here? It’ll make this a lot easier. Don’t worry, I’ll hold the jet still while you play musical chairs.”

Amahle gave Reece a look of concern before sighing and unbuckling herself. “See you soon, hopefully.” She joked.

She tentatively made her way to the cockpit, trying to hold onto something the entire distance. She was marginally successful at that, but it didn’t matter. Pasha kept the Phoenix perfectly still until she had buckled herself in one of the rear cockpit chairs. The moment that the last clasp locked into place, Pasha energized the Phoenix and they took off for Antananarivo. The motion caused the Adaro girl to wake, and she glanced around in fear.

“Whe...whe...where am I?” she stammered, clearly scared out of her mind.

“It’s okay, we’re flying to the Madagascan’s base,” said Reece, trying to calm the girl yet again.

“Flying!?!” yelled the girl. “Like birds?”

“Pretty much,” said Reece, smiling as sweetly as he could. “Yeah, just like birds.”

“How far up?” she whispered, almost like she didn’t want to know. Her eyes were pleading with Reece for an answer she could live with.

“Not far at all,” answered Reece truthfully. “Maybe a couple of hundred meters up.”

“A couple hundred...” the girl gasped out before collapsing into her seat, passing out from the fear.

Reece just studied Taela’s wide eyes and slightly parted lips as the color drained from her face. He couldn’t help but regard her with sympathy.

“Nice bedside manner,” chastised Aika in her typical sarcastic tone from the seat across from him.

“Hah, hah,” replied Reece blandly. “By the way, you all were amazing today.”

“Well, thanks,” replied Aika. Bjorn nodded and Ciera and Karina just smiled. “You know, you were pretty impressive yourself. When did you learn to control a whole group of them?”

“On the fly, I guess,” replied Reece. “I’m just glad it worked out.”

“Yeah...” added Karina, deep in thought. “Maybe we should practice your skills outside of combat. You know, before it becomes a life-or-death mistake.”

“I have to agree with you, love,” replied Reece, adding the endearment to mollify her. “I’ve been thinking of experimenting with my abilities so that I know exactly what I’m capable of and can use them dependably.”

“Good,” added Aika. “Between the two of us, we can help you to harness your powers fairly quickly. We don’t know when next we’ll need them. The faster you’re prepared, the better.”

“Fair enough,” answered Reece. “We’ll begin at the next available opportunity. I look forward to it. I have a few ideas on how I’d like to try and use my abilities.”

“Let us know if we can be of assistance,” added Bjorn, indicating himself, Hank, and Dmitri. Reece noticed that they seemed to be becoming good friends. It put a little smile on his face.

“You know I will,” replied Reece. “And thanks for the offer. I do appreciate it.”

After a few more minutes of small talk, they arrived at the Madagascan’s base. The Phoenix touched down and Amahle soon was walking down the steps from the cockpit. She glared at Reece, and her complexion was a little green. Reece unbuckled himself and the Adaro girl. He gently shook her.

“Hey, sweetie,” he whispered. “We’re back on the ground.”

The look of relief on her face was so pronounced that it was nearly laughable. Once they had disembarked, they were met by an extremely wary greeting party, and they were armed to the teeth. Amahle made her way to the front of the Phoenix’s passengers that had cleared the ramp.

“It’s okay,” she announced to her people. “They are friends...from the carrier. They helped us repel the ghoul attack.”

The Madagascans noticeably relaxed. The Adaro girl pressed herself against Reece, trying to disappear into him to avoid the large group of strangers. Reece had no idea what to do with the girl. The Madagascans indicated they follow them. Reece grabbed the girl and lightly pulled her along, following the greeting party to wherever they were leading them.

Looking around, Reece saw numerous dingy refugees, toiling away at several necessary jobs. What he didn’t see was anyone relaxing. These people were obviously hard workers, probably because their very lives depended on them all pitching in for everyone’s survival. Reece smiled at the sentiment. They continued to walk for some time. It had been a few minutes, at least. Again, Reece wondered where they were heading.

It soon became evident when they were led to a large Quonset hut. Following the head of the greeting party inside, Reece surveyed the hut. The building was set up as a sort of command center and dining area all rolled into one. There was a long ornate table made from some sort of dark wood and covered in a massive white tablecloth. It could easily seat thirty people.

The large table sat in the middle of the hut and the pair of Madagascans bid them seat themselves as they wished. Reece nodded in understanding and sat down in the nearest chair; a matched piece to the table and equally ornate, with a plush leather-covered seat. Aika and Karina quickly sat on either side of him. The Adaro girl peered around in fear and squeaked. Most of the seats were taken, but there were still a handful of empty ones, though they were filling up fast.

“For Jupiter’s sake,” cursed Aika, rolling her eyes. Despite her protest, Aika got up and moved over to sit on the other side of Karina. Once Aika had reseated herself, Karina took her hand and squeezed.

The Adaro girl relaxed again, smiling to herself as she sat down, pulling the seat over to bump against Reece’s chair. He gave her a welcoming look before looking over at Karina and Aika. They both looked at him through half-lidded eyes and lips pressed together, neither smiling nor frowning. He just shrugged helplessly and smiled. Luckily for him, the awkward moment was broken by a large African seated at the other end of the table. He had a singsong accent and was well-spoken.

“Greetings and salutations,” the big man began, standing and stretching his arms out, white robes that contrasted with his very dark skin draping off his arms and shoulders. His head was crowned with dreadlocks that fell nearly to his waist. Reece thought he had the look of a natural leader about him. “You may call me Abraham and I’d like to thank you for your timely assistance and look forward to our negotiations. Please, take some refreshment. You’ve had a busy day.”

He clapped his hands twice, and what appeared to be male and female servants entered the large room with platters full of meats, cheeses, exotic fruits and vegetables, and goblets of drink. The twenty or so Madagascans that had seated themselves at the table all appeared better dressed than most of the people Reece had seen on the island so far. He deduced that they were probably the leaders of this community while he took a bite of white cheese and a pear before trying the drink. It tasted a bit like beer but had a certain sweetness to it. All in all, he didn’t find it half bad, especially after the thirst they’d all built up over the day.

Looking over the edge of his goblet, he noted that their dinner companions were nearly as eclectic of a mix as he and his companions. Putting down the goblet, he took another bite of cheese as he tried placing their nationalities. The cheese had a strong but not unpleasant flavor. There were a pair of South Africans, he could tell by their accent. He also placed an Egyptian, and four Libyans – he had overheard them saying exactly where they hailed from. The rest he decided that he had no idea about as he finished the bite of cheese. He quickly chased it with a few bites of pear while everyone else found and ate whatever caught their eye. The food was exotic to his palette, yet delicious.

Even the Adaro girl partook of some grapes and a piece of fish. Reece noticed that there were three other Adaro seated around the table. All of them glanced over at Reece’s newest companion on occasion, their faces darkening each time. “Great,” thought Reece. “Now what have I gotten myself into?”

Looking down at the girl as she slurped down the raw fish, he did feel a certain amount of sympathy for her. She had just lost her mate and was now amidst a whole room of strangers. Reece attempted to use his power to invoke a sense of peace and comfort in the girl.

“What’s your name, sweetie?” he asked, trying to sound charming so she would feel more comfortable. “I’m Reece,” he added, indicating himself. Then he pointed at his two companions. “This is Aika and Karina.”

“Well met, sir, ma’am, ma’am...” she replied demurely. “I am called Taela. My mate is... was Toephan.” While she mentioned her mate, her eyes shifted down to her food and he could tell she was quietly crying, her shoulders bouncing subtly with each sob. She sniffed before looking back up at him. “I’m sorry. We aren’t supposed to show weakness to outsiders.”

Reece saw her eyes shift to the other three Adaro present at the table. A glance told Reece all he needed to know. They were all glowering at her. It got his hackles up.

He was realizing how unfriendly of a society they must have and that was probably why they remained hidden from humanity until the world nearly ended. Whatever their opinion was of him, he was finding that he cared less and less what they thought. He chastised himself for having such thoughts, especially if he ended up being an ambassador to them, which, considering his abilities, he could easily see happening. He didn’t have to like their ways, but they were their ways, not his. Swallowing another gulp of his sweet beer, he glanced back over to Taela.

“Well met, Taela,” he said. “It’s nice to meet you, I only wish it was under more pleasant circumstances.”

A shadow of despair crossed her face before she replied, “Thank you, and thank you for saving us.”

“Hey, we’re all in this together,” said Reece, attempting to lighten the girl’s mood. “The less there are of us, the more there are of them. We’re fighting a war of attrition here, and we can’t afford to lose.”

“Well said!” came a booming voice from the other end of the table. Reece turned to see the big man, Abraham, raising his goblet in a toast. Reece raised his goblet, and so did every else sitting around the table. “Here’s to the end of the undead menace and a return to the world that was before... our world.”

The table erupted with ululations, hoots, hollers, and a sound from the Adaro that was a mix of gurgling and clucking as everyone cheered the salutation in their own way. Everyone drank deeply from the goblets, punishing the long table by slamming them down hard.

“Now,” continued Abraham. “Let’s talk about what we can do for each other in service to that lofty goal.”