The Bonding (29 page)

Tarku pulled the towel from the TV and
glared at the General.

“We will have your meals delivered three
times a day and put into the small drawer beside the door. After you’ve
answered my questions, then we’ll let you return to your ship and leave.”

“And I’m supposed to believe that?” Tarku
questioned.

“You know, Tarku, I tried to be
reasonable and politely asked for your help, but you refused. So, you left me
with no choice.”

“It was a very bad choice, General.”

“It doesn’t have to be this way, Tarku.
Just give us the basics of how the spaceship operates and we’ll take it from
there. Give us a tour of your ship and let us see how it works.”

“How long do you plan on keeping me
here?”

“For as long as it takes,” the General
replied.

“Do you think that others will not come
looking for me?"

“You mean Miss Shelby? She is also being
detained at another location.”

“I’m talking about others from my planet.
We don’t take kindly to having our people and ships taken as prisoners. What
you are doing is considered as an act of war. I am expected back, and when I
don’t return, on schedule, the search will begin.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that they will locate
your ship, which I’m sure has some sort of locator beacon, but finding you will
be next to impossible. When we examined you, one of the things we looked for
was to see if you had any kind of transmitter inside your body.”

“You are playing a very dangerous game,
General. When the others from my planet arrive…”

“What? They’re going to blow up our
planet to get you back? I seriously doubt that. I do believe that they will
negotiate to trade some technology for your return. So you see, Tarku, I’m used
to playing dangerous games. Now, why don’t we make this simple and avoid an
intergalactical incident between our planets? Show our scientists how the ship
operates and you can go.”

Tarku said something to the General in
Zintandian and threw the towel back over the TV.

The General and Sergeant Martin looked at
each other. “I think he just cussed you out, General.”

“He can cuss all he wants, but I
will
get what I want.”

The sleek, black jet carrying Janet
touched down on the runway and stopped next to a hangar. An electric cart,
similar to the one Tarku had driven, pulled up beside the jet. Captain Gates
got into the front seat and extended his hand to Janet to sit in the back.

“Please, have a seat, Commander.”

They sped off into the hangar. Janet
looked around and began to get excited. “We’re back at Area 51, aren’t we?
 
This looks like the same hangar I was
in a few days ago.”

“The General will answer all of your
questions, Commander. I’m sorry, but I’m not at liberty to discuss anything.”

“Of course, why would you be?” she
mumbled.

Inside the hangar they drove directly
into a large elevator and descended. Janet was convinced that this was Area 51,
and was now anticipating being reunited with Tarku. The elevator opened into
the huge cavernous complex. She still couldn’t believe that all of this could
be built so far below the surface. They drove a short distance and stopped in
front of a group of offices.

“This is your stop, Commander,” Captain
Gates said. “General Redding is inside that door, waiting for you.”

She stepped off the cart and opened the
door. Inside
was
nothing but a table and four chairs.
On the other side of the room was another door. The General opened that door
and walked over to Janet, extending his hand.

“Hello, Commander. I trust that you had a
nice visit with your parents?”

Janet shook his hand. “Yes, thank you.”

“And I’m sure you’re wondering what
you’re doing at Area 51.”

“Why aren’t we at our spaceship?
 
Where is Tarku?”

“Tarku was here, but we’ve moved him to
another location.”

“Moved him? Why? What the hell is going
on?”

“All will be explained in due time,
Commander. But first, there are a few things we need to discuss. The last time
you were here I showed you some of our treasured collections, but not all of
them. You are about to see things that very few people have ever seen and…”

“General, no disrespect intended, but I
don’t give a shit about the spaceships and aliens. I have seen things, with
Tarku, that
no
human has
ever
seen.”

“Which is exactly why you’re here,
Commander.”

“I want to see Tarku,” she demanded.

“I told you, Tarku is not here. We’ve
moved him to another facility.”

“What the hell is going on?”

The General walked out the same door that
Janet had entered. “Come with me, Commander. I’ll explain as we drive.”

The electric cart was waiting. They
headed off down a series of corridors. “Commander Shelby, as you said before,
you’ve seen things and know things that no other person on Earth knows.”

“And the point of this is?”

“We have things here that are a mystery
to us; Things that have baffled our best scientists for decades. Things that
I’m willing to bet you’ve seen in your travels with Tarku and can help us
figure out how they work.”

“I wouldn’t count on that. Just because
I’ve seen a lot of strange things, that doesn’t mean I know how they work.”

The General stopped the cart in front of
the Annunaki spaceship. “Come inside, Commander, and take a closer look.”

They walked up the ramp into the craft.
“Tarku said that you know how this spaceship works, and that you can read these
symbols. In fact, I believe that he said you even know how to fly it.”

“Yes, and again, your point is?”

“We need your help. You could save our scientists
years of research by simply showing them how this works?”

She shook her head. “Didn’t you ask
Tarku?”

The General frowned. “Yes, but he
wouldn’t help us. He knew exactly how it operated, but refused to give us any
information.”

“That’s because he’s bound by universal
laws that prohibit him from trading technology with planets that have not yet
achieved light speed travel.”

“Universal laws my ass!” the General
growled. “Who the hell is going to know? How many thousands of light-years away
is
his planet? Commander, seriously, think about it.
Do you really think that those people give a shit about what happens on our
planet? We’ll all be dead by the time our technology gets to the point where we
could travel to them.”

“That’s the way he believes, General, and
you’re not going to change his mind.”

“Maybe not, but you could change it.”

“Absolutely not! I will not ask him to go
against his beliefs or the laws governing him.”

“Then you share the technology with us. I
know that you’ve learned all about his technology, and the technology of other
alien races. And, we know that you can operate his spaceship.”

“I can’t help you.”

“Bullshit! You’ve got a duty to perform
here, Commander. Don’t forget that you’re still a Lieutenant Colonel in the
U.S. Air Force, and our species certainly comes before his.”

“If this were a life or death situation
for our species, then I might agree with you, General. But it isn’t. This is
nothing more than greed, trying to steal something that isn’t yours.”

“Damn it, Commander! You’re just not
seeing the big picture. Some alien species left this spaceship here. We didn’t
go to their planet and steal it. They fucked up and crashed it into our back
yard, and they never came back to get it. That makes it ours. So now, we’re
trying to figure out how the damned thing works. I don’t see that as stealing.
I see that as trying to advance the technology of our planet.”

Janet looked at the control console of
the Annunaki ship. “I’ve never actually flown one of these. I do know how to
read these symbols, and I’m sure I could figure out how to fly it. It looks
very primitive compared to Tarku’s, but I could also crash it in the process.”

“Well, you do know how Tarku’s ship
works. You could show us that, and explain to our scientists how to read the
symbols on this ship. Just show them what you can.”

Janet was silent for a moment. “I would
be betraying an oath that I took when I became a resident of Tarku’s planet.”

The General sighed. “Commander, I realize
that you’ve been through a lot in the last three years, but you’re still an
Earthling, and this is your home. This is where your allegiance lies. This is
where your family and friends are. So let the scientists see his ship. Hell,
take them for a ride. It will at least give them a starting point.”

“I can’t let anyone onto my ship,
General.”

“Oh, so now it’s
your
ship,
Commander?”

“No, it’s Tarku’s. But I can’t let anyone
on board.”

The General shook his head in disgust.
“You’re making this much more difficult than it has to be, Commander. Do you realize
that I could have you court-martialed and imprisoned for failing to obey orders
from a General and treason to your country.”

“That’s bullshit! I’ve done nothing to
warrant treason.”

“You will have by the time I get done
with you,” the General sneered. “And you have already disobeyed a direct order
from a superior officer.”

“This isn’t right, General, and you know
it.”

“Like I said, Commander, you’re making
this much more difficult than it has to be. Do your duty for your country and
planet, and you and Tarku can be on your merry way.”

Janet was silent again. “Let me see
Tarku.”

“No way! Not until you show us how the
ship works.”

“I want to see Tarku!”

“You’re in no position to demand
anything, Commander. Show us how the ship works. In fact, fly the ship here,
with our scientists on board. Let them take pictures and give them detailed
explanations of what you’re doing as you fly it, and I’ll have him waiting for
you.”

Janet stared into his eyes. “How do I
know I can trust you?”

“I’ll give you my word, as a gentleman
and an officer. You help me and I’ll help you.”

She didn’t say a word, but continued
staring into his eyes. Finally, she reluctantly nodded. “Okay! But I have one
request.”

“And that is?”

“I want to see my parents one more time
before I go, because when I leave, I’ll never see them again.”

“But you just left them this morning.
Didn’t you say your good-bye’s?”

“That’s the deal. Let me spend the night
with them and tomorrow morning we’ll bring the spaceship here. I’ll even give
the scientists a real thrill. I’ll take them on a quick trip of our galaxy and
let them see what it’s like to travel faster than light. I’ll show them Pluto
up close, fly them around Saturn, take them to the surface of Jupiter and have
them back here by evening.”

The General slightly squinted, trying to
notice anything in Janet’s eyes that would indicate if she were lying. “Agreed!
Oh, and one other thing Commander, I’ll be on the ship with you, along with two
of my soldiers, just to ensure that all goes as planned.”

They left the Annunaki ship and headed
back to the office where Captain Gates was waiting. When they stopped, Janet
looked back into the cavernous area from where they had just come, and silently
stared.

“Commander,” Captain Gates said. “Are you
okay? Commander?”

Janet appeared to be daydreaming then
suddenly heard Captain Gates. “Uh, what? I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“Is everything all right, Commander?”

“Oh yes! Everything is just fine.” What
none of them knew was that Janet had sensed Tarku’s presence and felt his
thoughts. As they drove away on the cart, she continued to look back and
smiled.

In his room Tarku sat on his bed with his
eyes closed. The bonding was strong with Tarku and Janet. They felt each other,
and knew that they were close. Tarku felt what Janet was thinking. He whispered
something in Zintandian and smiled.

Janet’s cart arrived at the surface and
she momentarily closed her eyes and whispered the same thing as Tarku. They had
each whispered “I love you.”

Chapter Twenty

The sleek, black jet flew Janet back to
Fort Worth. The farther they got from Area 51 the less she could feel Tarku,
but she could still feel him. This situation had somehow amplified both of
their feelings. Even when she arrived in Fort Worth, she was still able to
sense him. She was beginning to fully understanding the power of the bonding.

On her way back, she had called her
parents and told them that she would be spending one more night with them. They
were thrilled, of course, and Janet was glad to be able to see them one more
time. Captain Gates drove her to their house along with two cars of military
police.