Chapter # 17

The Major approaches them. He welcomes Tosha back home with a hug and a kiss for her cheek, a large welcoming smile across his face. Then he turns toward Marshall and begins fiercely shouting

"Fool, imbecile, idiot! What have you done? You did not go the correct building as I instructed you. Instead you gathered information planted by our enemy. How stupid of you! You have failed this mission! Or are you actually a plant sent here to undermine our trying to save this world. Guards seize him NOW! We must punish this disease in the harshest of ways."

Marshal and Tosha are taken aback and instantly both have their weapons drawn and are nervously fanning the room waiting for someone, anyone to make a move. They slowly back against the wall.

The Major and the others also have weapons drawn, mini light cannons and particle beam projectors.

"Tosha, step away from that animal and put down that weapon."

"No, Major, I will not. I am not that little girl you can order around any more. I love him and besides I used the detector to find the box and we followed where it said to go. Now drop YOUR weapons or we will open fire."

The Major takes a deep breath, then smugly asks "Tosha, have you forgotten who I am? Forgotten I am the best commander and fiercest warrior this ship or our people ever have seen. Remember how I have been put in charge of your safety. Had it not been for my wound I would be an Admiral of this fleet."

Tosha glares at the Major.

"You assume a lot, Major. Just remember who I am. Now shut up, back away and send us back down there now before its too late so we can correct our misdeed. That is an order, Major. An order from the Princess Tosha Votrainilana of third Mirrockeran earth. DO IT NOW!" The tone is very commanding. And Tosha stands in a very aggressive posture.

The transporter operator is standing by as the guards lower their weapons and drop to one knee. The Major, insulted and knowing that going against the Princess' orders will get him killed, spins tightly and walks out of the room. Tosha watches the Major leave. She is disgusted with his attitude. She then notices everyone kneeling.

She shakes her head as she sternly announces, "Oh PLEASE! Get up will you, how are you going to do your jobs down there?"

Marshal watches the way everything goes down and takes Tosha by the arm, leading her off to a corner away from everyone. "You're really a princess? Look, I smell a rat; something is NOT right here. Are you positive we need to go back down there right now?"

Tosha smiles at Marshall.

"Yes, I am a princess." she blushes "I do not smell anything. And Yes, again. We must go back to the planet's surface and retrieve the information from the correct box. Speaking of that, I should discard this information packet." She reaches into one of the deep pockets in the coat and pulls out something that resembles a diskette.

Just as she is about to toss it into the disposal, Marshall grabs her arm.

"Wait, don’t throw that away. Not yet, not until it's analyzed. It could be the major is leading us on a wild goose chase."

Tosha orders one of the techs to have the diskette analyzed, when the transporter tech speaks.

Your Highness, if you are going back to the surface we must have you do it soon. We are loosing the window in the element of time."

Tosha kisses Marshall lightly. "We must leave now, love.” she giggles as she walks towards the transporter while holding Marshall's arm. "By the way, what do geese have to do with this mission?"

The transporter fires and they are gone.

The Major notices the faint dimming of the lights in the room he is in. The transporter draws a lot of power from this floor and its power supply. But the dimming of lights or drawing of power is not what is concerning him. He covers his videophone with a soft dark cloth. His vidphone being, a combination ship and personnel communicator, security system and computer with two-way video connections. He then turns on music and walks into the bathroom area of his quarters. Removing a small metal plate, he reaches in and removes a disk about the size of a bottle cap. Placing it on the sink he touches it lightly and waits for the tiny communicator to open up. First a small beam of light appears like a thread of light reaching about two feet off the sink top. Then the light expands and seems to grow some substance. The Major looks into the newly formed screen.

"They are on their way back. As a matter of fact they are most likely on the surface already. Do what ever you must but do not allow them to leave the planet alive. And yes please feel free to be just as merciless you possibly can to that earthling." The Major smiles and waves his hand through the light. It vanishes and soon the Major has the tiny communicator back in its hiding place.

In the secondary control room, Marlin is amusing himself and the controllers there by asking questions and watching as they do their jobs.

"Why is that gauge moving and what does this flashing light over here mean?" he asks one of the communicator operators.

The young woman replies, "That gauge tells me there is a power fluctuation on the ship at deck 5 room 505. That is the transporter room. See the transporter is also a communicator of…."

Marlin cuts her off. "Well, milady, what does this flashing red light over here by itself tell you then?" He moves her beverage container and sure enough the warning light is flashing.

The young woman with shock in her eyes asks"How long has that been flashing Marlin." Her voice is full of panic.

Marlin strokes his chin pondering that question trying to come up with the perfect answer to impress this petite amber hared lovely. When she stands and shakes him roughly. Her tone now is sheer panic "HOW LONG HAS THAT LIGHT BEEN FLASHING? NEVER MIND." She shoves him back a step with one hand and fumbles for her headset. Finding it, she tries to calm herself by taking two deep breaths. She then keys the mic.

"Captain, we have just been alerted of an unauthorized transmission leaving the ship at the exact time the Princess was transported to the surface of the planet. Triangulation shows us the transmission came from Major Kripstol's suite."

A young man asks permission to enter the major's room. The door opens and the fuzzy sound of a light cannon is heard faintly escaping the room. The young man is dragged in and a broken communicator is placed in his hand. An alarm is sounding.

"Shots have been fired on deck 5. Lights flash leading the way to the room. As the guards enter, the major looks up triumphantly.

"I believe I just caught this man making unauthorized communications to the planets surface. It is such a shame I was forced to kill him. Now we will never know who he was talking to."

The next thing heard by everyone on board is the high piercing whistle of the Captain's announcement pipe going off.

"This is NOT A DRILL repeating THIS IS NOT A DRILL. Someone on board this vessel has just transmitted an unauthorized message to the planet. At this time there is a red alert state of emergency issued. First priority is the safe return of the Princess."

The Captains COM light flashes at that statement as the transporter operator calls the Captain.

"Sir, due to the sudden electrical storm and the ferocity of the battle below." The voice pauses for a moment hesitant to reveal the truth. "We lost her sir. We know she made it to the surface but we cannot pinpoint her to lock and retrieve her."

The ship falls quiet as everyone realizes they may have just sent the princess into a trap and certain doom.