Page 24 of Selected By the Dragon Alien
“It looks like it was designed for long voyages,” Ellion added. “I can’t imagine it could go anywhere, now. It’s been embedded in the mountain for at least six centuries. It’s just a very fancy house now.” He gestured to the center chair. “That must be where the commander or general sits. Whoever they were, they were likely Zaruxians, judging by the chair. It’s made for wings like mine.”
Turi eyed the chair and the large, flat, wraparound console that sat before it. “Maybe it was your chair,” she said. “Or that of one of your relatives.”
He walked around the curved console and examined the dark symbols on the surface. “My people may have used this fortress as a mobile base. Perhaps they were exploring the galaxy.”
“Before the Axis came,” Turi muttered. She remembered what Ara said about the Skracs living there longer than her people. The full implications of everything she was learning were taking shape. “Before we were all imprisoned by them.”
“Indeed,” said Ellion. He slid around the console and sat in the captain’s chair. It looked like it was made of smooth, dark metal. It wrapped around him like a protective shell. He ran a hand over the symbols on the console and gazed at its black, seamless surface with a frown. “I looked over the logs of the previous overseer—I mean,myold logs. Trying to make sense of…things.”
“Is it hard to accept thatyouwere the previous overseer?” Turi asked.
He shook his head. “No, but it’s unsettling, to say the least.” Worry creased his brow. “If we can find the next journal, there may be a clue about what the Axis did to me, how they operate. If there are any more of my species or yours out there.” He tapped the console, deep in thought.
Turi’s eyes widened. An idea sparked in her mind. “Maybe it’s not a book at all. Maybe that’s why we can’t find it.”
Ellion turned in his big chair. “Whatisn’t a book?” he asked, one brow raised.
She turned her gaze to the console under Ellion’s fingers. “This command center has a databank, doesn’t it?”
Ellion’s eyes lit up. “I hadn’t considered that.” He faced the console and looked for some way to turn it on. Touching the screen hadn’t worked. “Maybe it’s this…” He tapped a glowing square on the arm of the chair. With a low hum, the screen came to life, bathing Ellion’s face in a blue glow. The symbols, which had been dark moments ago, illuminated on the curved surfaceand began shifting and changing too quickly for Turi to read. “Welcome, Ellion,” a smooth male voice said from the console.
“Ah, hello.” Ellion grinned at Turi. “Do I have any personal logs in your database?”
“Yes. There are seven hundred thirty-two personal log entries. Would you like to review them?” The computer filled the screen with an inventory of entries and dates—all aligning with the time period of the missing journal.
Seven hundred thirty-two entries was a lot, and it was only one section of his existence. Turi’s own life wouldn’t fill even one small book, let alone the centuries of life Ellion had lived.
“Excellent. Transfer all entries to a datapad,” Ellion instructed.
“Compiling. Please wait,” the computer replied. Moments later, a small slot opened on the side of the console and a flat, rectangular pad slid out. Ellion picked it up and held it out to Turi. “Let’s see what we can find.”
She took it carefully, her fingers tingling at the smooth surface. “What do we do if the Axis find out about this?” she asked.
Ellion sent a glance to the window where the dark cyclone in the sky was visible. “This fortress’s true form has been dormant for centuries. They must consider it harmless, or all this would be gone. But to stay on the safe side, I’ll shut down this command center in case the Axis’ communications array out there registers a power surge.”
The command center went dark as Ellion tapped a different square on the chair. He turned to Turi with a somber expression. “Let’s go. We have some reading to do.”
As they returned to the main hall, a series of loud chimes echoed through the fortress. Red lights flashed on the walls. Turi jumped, startled by the sudden change from quiet to alarm.
“More visitors?” she whispered, hiding instinctively behind Ellion again.
Ellion’s face hardened. His wings extended slightly as he strode forward. “It appears so.”
He activated a viewscreen that showed the main courtyard outside the fortress doors. Turi gasped as she saw a large group of Terian males, armed with farming tools and makeshift weapons, gathered outside. Among them, she recognized her father and brother, their faces contorted with rage. Two Riests stood at the front, their red hats askew and robes billowing in the wind. This was no friendly visit.
“Stay behind me, Turi.” Ellion touched a square on the wall, and the massive fortress doors slid open with a heavy groan. The angry shouts of the mob intensified, and the Riests stepped forward, their voices booming with righteous indignation.
“Overseer, we apologize for interrupting you at your home,” one Riest said with a half-hearted bow. “Another female disappeared last night. We require an explanation.”
Ellion’s arms crossed as he gazed down at the rabble. “I have no knowledge of this disappearance.”
Of course, he didn’t. He had been with Turi all day and last night. They hadn’t seen Ara, yet, who would undoubtedly deliver news about the missing female. Turi’s belly tightened at the thought of another abduction to a slave auction. Yet another reason to…what? Overturn the Axis? It was an absurd thought. What could two prisoners do to undermine a penal empire? But fire burned in her gut at the treatment her people had endured—were still enduring.
“Respectfully, Overseer, if you came to the settlements more frequently, you would know,” the Riest said.
“I have been otherwise engaged,” Ellion replied. “But I will investigate this missing female and inform you of what I learn.”
“Enough!” The voice was from Tregit, her father. It rose loudly above the others’. “We are done bowing to you, Overseer. Where is my daughter Turi? I want her returned at once!”