Sholan Alliance Au Bk 02 Ch 04

Welcome to my next chapter in the Sholan Alliance. I do want to say that I am sorry for the slow posting of the Silver Moon and Ranicke series. I am working on them but at the moment I finally have some ideas for this and need to get them down. Even if it is just short notes at the moment and come back later but I have to get them down. I am working on the others and am hoping to have new chapters posted soon.

I want to thank everyone who provided constructive criticism on this and my other stories. Any and all relations are 18+.

Chapter 4

Moments after the tower had the top blown off by the Sholan fighter everything started to happen. The Swiss troops had taken up a defensive perimeter. On the top of nearby buildings they were setting up sniper nests, AA missiles, and various sensors. The Sholans had all been recalled to the ships they were assigned to. Warriors were taking up positions surrounding the two ships.

The ambassador had been recalled as well and Ikarius came with her as well as a shield of soldiers. He was doing everything he could to ensure that she made it back to the barque. Once they had arrived the soldiers turned the protection over to the Sholan Warriors but remained with to ensure ongoing communications. "Ambassador I do not know what is happening right now but we are investigating. I request permission to remain with you to ensure that you will have the most current information."

She paused on the ramp and then nodded. "I appreciate your offer and that is a very good idea. Come with me please." She hurried into the ship and Ikarius followed. She went straight to her office and settled down behind the desk and activated the computer. "Please sit and relax." Teolura turned to her assistant. "Drinks please and send a message to the commander that I need to speak to him as soon as he has a chance."

Ikarius was reviewing notes on his communicator and was not looking happy. For the moment all they knew was that a sniper appeared to have taken a shot and injured Billy and one of the Sholans. He set the communicator on the desk and activated the large screen and keyboard. Once they were displayed he started typing commands in. "I am connected with the Colonel in charge and for the moment all we know is that someone took a shot. I will need the status of Billy so I can keep both the Swiss and my command informed of what is happening."

Teolura nodded. "Right now he is in medical being evaluated. As soon as the doctor has any information she will inform me." The door opened and some drinks were brought in. "Thank you and just leave the tray and nibbles." There were some snacks on the tray as well. She poured two cups and slid one over to him.

~~~

In medical as soon as Vangie carried Billy in Desjean started snapping orders. When Satasha was carried in she directed her assistant to check on her since there weren't any visible wounds. Billy went onto the trauma table and she started working. As she was working several IV's were being started and the scanner was working. It wasn't going to be perfect due to the movement but she would be able to see the damage.

When the scanner finished Billy had been stripped and one of the IV's was pumping in an oxygenated fluid to replace the blood he had lost. They needed to get some actual blood of his type but for the short term this would take care of him. She had sprayed on a coagulant which had slowed the bleeding down some. It was only temporary but Desjean needed the time to review the scan results.

What she found was not good. Whatever had hit him had shattered his shoulder blade, several ribs and damaged his shoulder. The rib fragments had penetrated the lung and he had several lacerations and the lung was collapsing. She didn't have what was needed to do more than a temporary dressing but chances were good he wouldn't make it to a hospital. On top of that Desjean had no idea what the medical level was. If he was taken to the mother ship at the very least they could fix his lung and ribs. Beyond that they might need to go to Shola for further repairs on him.

"What is the status of Lt. Verzilon?" She called over her shoulder as she started doing some temporary patch work. Dr. Desjean knew that she was not going to be able to stabilize him enough to transport him. At the moment she was simply trying to keep him from coding on the table. If she could get even a few minutes to think she might be able to come up with something.

"Ma'am it looks like she is just in a telepathic coma. She has no physical injuries though she is showing signs of being injured in the same spot." As of now she had an IV and several meds on board to help with any pain as well as to keep her asleep. "What do you want us to do?"

Desjean leaned back and frowned. "Get the two cryo chambers ready and start the cryo meds on both Captain Madlax and Lt. Verzilon. We are going to need to tank them for the moment." She didn't like that idea since she honestly wasn't sure how Billy would handle it. There wasn't much of a choice though.

She should really contact his daughters for their input but there wasn't time. If they lost Billy they would lose Lt. Verzilon. Considering this was the first of a cross species leska link they needed to try their hardest to save them. It only took about ten minutes for the meds to start taking affect and to get the two of them in the chambers. The whole process would take a bit over a half hour but once they were in it was automated.

Once they were in the capsules she took a moment to take a breath. She had been very close to losing both of them and that would have really upset her. She liked both of them and they had shown a great deal of courage to take out the bonding contract. That and to show their bravery in the face of both their species by letting their love show.

"Doctor the Ambassador is waiting for your report." The attendant was in the process of cleaning up the blood and other fluids as he spoke. Several others were doing the same.

"It is going to have to wait for a bit. I am going to contact their family and let them know what is happening." She stripped off the gown and gloves as she was walking to her office and dumped them in the recycler. Before the call she was going to need a quick shower to rinse her fur off.

Desjean stepped into the small shower that was in medical and took a quick shower. Once she was dry enough she pulled on a spare tabard and settled down at her desk. She placed the call and while waiting for it to pick up she fixed a cup of c'shar.

When it was picked up she was facing his girls in front and the others gathered around. Most of them looked rather upset and pale not that she blamed them. "Sally, Dani I have placed your father in cryo since I can't take care of him here. Satasha is in cryo as well since they can't survive apart. Vangie is getting fixed up right now. His wounds were relatively minor though he is going to be off duty for a week or longer. Do you have any questions?"

Sally gulped and nodded. When she spoke her voice was hoarse and withdrawn. "What is wrong with Daddy and when can I speak with Vangie?" Dani murmured something in Sally's ear. "Dani wants to know what you mean by you would have lost both of them?"

Desjean leaned back a bit. "Your father was hit in the back. The weapon used shattered his shoulder blade, several ribs and ended up going through part of his shoulder. I wasn't able to stop the bleeding and though normally I would have asked felt the best way to save him was cryo. As far as losing both of them with the mental link they have they can't survive without the other." She took a sip of the drink before speaking again. "Once Vangie is taken care of I will have him call you. I need to talk to the human doctor and the ambassador before I can really say much else."

~~~

They talked for a bit longer before she hung up. Instead of comm'ing the Ambassador Desjean stood and walked over to her assistant. "I need to speak with the Ambassador." She didn't know Ikarius was in the office as well.

She was shown in moments later and paused for a moment as she took in the human. Desjean turned to the Ambassador and nodded. "I am here to update you on the status of Captain Madlax and Lt. Verzilon." She settled in a seat and sighed. "As of right now they are both in cryo and..." She went on to describe the extent of the injuries Billy and Vangie sustained.

The Ambassador rubbed an ear and sighed. "Do you have any idea what happened or why Commodore?" If there was a threat she wanted to know so they could setup the security they could.

Ikarius straightened up in the seat. "Unfortunately at this moment Ambassador I do not have that information. As of yet nobody has come forward to claim responsibility. When the news does go out it is possible that the group responsible will put out something. On the flip side of the coin it is possible a number of groups may claim responsibility. It is going to take a bit of time to chase any and all leads down."

He sighed. "We did not see this coming at all." Or not so soon since normally there was some chatter but for this they hadn't had any indicator it was going to happen. "I have sent out requests for information as well as instructions on how they would like to proceed. We obviously need to increase the security around here and or possibly moving you to a more secure location."

The Ambassador didn't like that idea but they might have to. "I am going to need to send some messages out requesting additional information. It is going to take some time to get a response. The doctor has already requested the human doctor to come and review her findings." She dismissed both of them but asked that Ikarius remain on board in case she had questions.

~~~

By the end of the day a number of changes had been made to security. There were far more troops on duty and doing patrols. The Sholan fighter was remaining in the air for the time being to provide fire support. The human doctor confirmed Desjean's diagnosis. He also agreed that chances were slim if they tried taking him to a hospital. For the moment they shelved that issue but were going to revisit it in a day or two.

~~~

That night Vangie was back aboard the Sandi and Sally was curled up next to him. She was being very careful not to press on his wounds and had helped him as much as possible. Now all she could do was cry on his shoulder. Both knew that he couldn't hold her but having him next to her really helped. Dani was with Jenna and Sandi being comforted. Kingie had his hands full with Crystal since she freaked out when Billy had been shot.

All in all her day had been shot to hell and the possibility of losing her father scared the daylights out of her. The idea of losing Satasha scared her as well since they had bonded as good friends. Vangie had shifted slightly and was holding one of her hands. "Sleep Sally and I will be here for you." He stroked her hair for a few before he started snoring.

~~~

The next two days were spent dealing with the implications of the attack. The tower had been carefully cleared and they found some remains of the body and weapon. Interpol as well as a number of other agencies were doing everything they could to identify the body. The remains of the weapon had gone to Scotland Yard for processing as well as the rest of the physical evidence. For the time being the Sholan's were remaining aboard their ships.

One thing the Sholan's had made clear was that they didn't hold any of the various governments responsible. There was even a televised broadcast by the Sholan's and the representatives stating this. They were there to stay and that was it. The only reason they would leave would be at the request of the various governments.

Behind the scenes were negotiations on what to do with Billy and Satasha. By now they had accepted that Billy needed the Sholan's medical skills and technology to survive. For good measure he had been called back to active service and advanced to Captain due to seniority and that he ran his own ship. Satasha had been advanced as well though neither knew this.

It had also been decided that they would be sent to the mother ship for the initial treatment. They were going to be going on the Sandi and escorted by the fighter. The two had become central to a number of issues and their deaths would definitely cause problems. Both the Ambassador and Dr. Desjean insisted that Billy be taken to the mother ship. That was also demanded by his daughters as well.

The decision had been made and the girls, Jenna, Sandi, Vangie, Kingie, and Crystal would be going back. They hadn't mentioned it but the body of the fallen Warrior was going back as well. The flight was scheduled for the following Monday to give Vangie time to heal more. He was going to be the acting Captain for the flight to the ship. Depending on what happened he might be acting Captain for the flight to Shola.

~~~

The leaders of the company were not pleased with the results. All of them had seen the news on the shooting including some raw footage a tourist had managed to capture of one of the Sholan ships taking out the top of the tower. They had known almost immediately that their operative hadn't survived the return fire.

All of them watched the news for the next few days and were rather upset with the Sholan's broadcast. That was most definitely not the results they wanted. Having them interfere with the plan even though they didn't realize it was frustrating. It had taken years to get most of the chips in place and this was threatening to completely derail what they were trying to accomplish. After the broadcast they called for a session of the senior members.

The meeting took place in the virtual world and all the connections had been routed through so many different nodes it wasn't funny. All were in shadows and their voices digitally changed. In theory the chat room was for one of the various spy games so the conversation should go un-noticed. To further hide their identities they were labeled by a number.

First called the meeting to order. "I am showing all seven members available. Verify connections and then we will start." He waited for several moments till all indicators were green. "Very well and we are going to limit this to the intentions and results of the most recent operation. Number three explain who was tasked and what his abilities were."

Third pretended to shuffle some cards before speaking. "The operative was stationed in zone three and available. He was an obvious choice since he had the skills required and the target was in zone three as well. This removed any additional documentation needed and or any covert method of insertion or retrieval." Third looked at the cards again. "The operative has been used a number of times and has never been caught and never been implicated. Due to this the operative was a prime choice for the mission."

Everyone contemplated that. First spoke again. "Fourth detail what happened and what we had been hoping for as a result." He had all the information and could have simply stated it but that would have caused problems. Each of the members had an area they were responsible for as well as operations. They ranged from bribes, assassinations, political adjustments, and far more. Their plans were very expansive and were aimed at the world and not just one section.

Fourth didn't bother with cards or anything like that. She felt that third was a bit to much of a showman. "We are not completely sure how they located him. From the news feeds and direct feed from him he managed to shoot the tramp captain who found the aliens. There are indicators that he did hit one of the aliens and for some reason a second alien went down. Moments after that as we all know the alien ship fired at the tower and instantly killed our operative. In the process to the best of our ability to tell most of his equipment as well."

She paused and took a sip of something before continuing. "What we had hoped was to scare the aliens away so they wouldn't interfere. If that didn't happen we were hoping that they would at least step back and limit the contact with the authorities. If they had done that we could have continued with our plans with minimal changes. Instead it seems to have made them move even closer to certain individuals. Since those individuals are fairly senior this is a cause for alarm. If they start providing access to even some of their technology it is going to cause major problems with the plan."

First glanced around and received a nod of understanding from everyone. "Sixth has the operative been retrieved from the aliens? If so what is being done and if not what are we going to do?" The operative was a valuable asset but had enough information to impact on certain operations.

Sixth was still for a moment before speaking. "The second operative was scheduled to be retrieved but with the results of the attempt it has been delayed. This has been marked down as 'security' concerns for the safety of all concerned. One of my assets is working to get her legally moved and returned to her 'family'. Will this work I am not sure and if not plans are being looked at on how best to remove her as a potential problem. I should be hearing something in the next few days."

First nodded at him. "Keep me updated on that and if needed we might need to take some drastic actions. I would prefer not to but better safe than sorry. If possible see if we might be able to get a message to her to lay low or else." He turned to another shadow. "Seventh what sort of impact has the capture of the ship caused?" Jack Sparrow was a pain in the ass and to be honest if he hadn't been so useful over the years would be dead. He was an egomaniac and believed nothing would ever touch him. The most concerning part was what sort of information had been captured from his ship.

Seventh waggled her hand. "That is a tough question to answer since we don't know what they might have captured aboard the ship. We also don't know what sort of information they might get out of what is left of the crew. I did try to see if we could get someone to them but security is so tight that a roach couldn't get through." Bit of an exaggeration but expected from her. "From an operational aspect the loss of the ship isn't a huge deal since it is designed as a raider and not a major combatant. The loss of it can be made up in a few months with minimal issues."

"On the other hand there is a very real possibility that one or more of our bases have been compromised. I have set in motion a complete review of his last dozen visits and entry and exit scans. I am hoping to identify which bases are potentially compromised. Once that is done I will see about getting them relocated to alternate sites. If this happens it will set our plans back significantly." She returned the link to first.

All were taking a moment to review the notes they had made to see if there were any questions when one speaker requested to speak. Once he received it he looked around. "Just a brief comment for everyone. Most of the various space going militaries have gone to a higher level of security. Having said that I haven't gotten any indication of expanded fleet training. That is especially true with the ship to ship and ship to ground assaults. There are indications they might be on the horizon but at the moment they are just trying to figure out what happened and why."

First gave him a nod. "Thank you second for that. Everyone keep your assets restrained but also try and gather as much information as possible. If possible try and get any information on the changes made to that damn ship that screwed this up. If we can get the drive mod's then it will give us a jump on the rest when we activate the Plan." He logged off and stretched.