"Let's get them mapped so we can get a better idea of what we're dealing with," Sloane decided.
Both Sloane and Tucker had been studying up on alien weapons tech, courtesy of Emperor Daryus, who was doing everything in his power to turn Sloane into a superweapon. Now I understood why they had been working so hard on it. To me, the bulbs looked just like the kind of cameras I had seen in stores, like the ones in my lab.
"The moment the men step out, the Ohrurs will know something is up." Sloane cursed under her breath.
"Not even the cover of darkness will help," Tucker agreed.
"So we need to turn them off," I argued.
Sloane turned to me, "Can you do that?"
"Nova, can you hack into their system and give me access to their drones?" I turned to Nova before I answered Sloane.
"On it." Nova grinned, boxing Nock in his side and knocking him almost off balance. Come on, partner. We've got work to do. What do you need, Alice?"
"Access to one or two work drones without the Ohrurs knowing," I said, taking in the multitude of drones around the compound. "Once I figure out their power source, I can have the drones sabotage it," I said to Sloane.
"Excellent." Sloane nodded at me.
"Uhm, Alice, you know I love and trust you," Xyrek's voice sounded out over the comm.
"That doesn't sound like a vote of confidence coming my way," I wagered.
"Well, it's just… were you able to fix the other bots?"
"Xyrek," I made my tone sound sweet, "I love you too. Do you remember what Zapharos told you?"
A loud groan was the answer.
When the time comes, you must listen to her. Trust her, as you always have. She will know what to do. She has always known.
Zapharos' words hung unspoken and heavy in the air between us.
"We're in," Nova announced proudly, high-fiving Nock, who grinned from ear to ear.
"You are the best pupil I’ve ever had," he told Nova.
"I'm the only pupil you ever had," she corrected.
"My point exactly," Nock chuckled. Nova made a face at him, and he chuckled even more. Their easy camaraderie took some of the tension out of the room.
"Okay, these two are all yours," Nova announced, sending a cube my way.
I took a moment to study the drones and commands before I was able to navigate them through the compound.
"What are you looking for?" Tucker asked.
"I don't know yet, but I will once I see it," I told him, recalling my own homework of studying alien technology over the last few weeks. I wasn't an expert by any means. I knew enough to know that I still had miles to learn, but I had a rudimentary understanding of how things worked. Of course, their tech was not only much different than the tech I was used to from Earth, but they differed between species. Some relied on what we called solar power, others on hydro and wind power, depending on their ecosystems. There were also those who relied on what I called nuclear power to make it easier—it was much more sophisticated than that, but in essence, it was similar. Other power sources included planet-specific sources like gas, atmosphere, and so on. There was one planet that accessed an electromagnetic field that fascinated me.
"See anything yet?" Sloane's impatient voice ripped me from my musings.
I shook my head and drew one drone closer to a rectangular box.
"Is that it?" Sloane asked.
"Sloane," I turned to her.
"Yes?"
