Taryn grinned. “See, you do understand me.”
Nova sighed. “You have always been crazy and a little reckless.”
“Not reckless, Nova. Just forward-thinking. You stage the play, think of a few ideas about how to get the ship, and I’ll find a way to make it work.”
“Always the super leader to the rescue. Although one day, your luck may run out, Taryn.”
Nova and Taryn were nearly the same age, both in their early thirties, and had grown up together. Nova was her best friend and one of the few people Taryn was unafraid to speak her fears with. “As long as my luck lasts through this ordeal, I’m okay with that. I can’t just sit and watch our people despairing if another year or ten pass before there’s new blood. If we had a way to get a message to Earth, it would make everything easier. But, we don’t have that capability.”
Nova raised her brows. “Finding a way to contact Earth or the Earth Colony Alliance might be an easier goal than taking over a ship.”
“The message would take years to get there and who knows if the ECA would even send a rescue ship to such a distant colony.” Taryn shook her head. “I can’t rely on chance alone. I’ll send a message from the alien ship, but I also want the technology to save us in the near future, too. I much prefer being in control.”
Nova snorted. “Sometimes a little too much in control, in my opinion.”
“A leader letting loose doesn’t exactly instill confidence,” she drawled.
“Then promise me that once you save the planet, you let me show you some fun. No one should die before riding the sloping Veran waterfalls.”
Taryn sighed and sank into the chair in front of Nova’s desk. “Fine. But how about we focus on capturing the aliens first?”
Nova removed a sheaf of crude paper made from the purple wood of the local trees and took out an ink pot and golden feather. “I’ll come up with a fool-proof capture plan, but I hope you keep me in the loop about what happens next.”
“I will when it’s time. I need to see who we’re dealing with before making concrete plans.”
Dipping her feather into the ink pot, Nova scratched a few notes on the purple paper. “Then let me get to work. The staging is mostly done already, but I need to think beyond that. Since we’ve never tried to capture a large ship before, it’s going to take some time. I think someone captured a shuttle in the past, but we’ll see if I can find the record.”
“You always go on about how you love challenges.”
“Don’t remind me.” She made a shooing motion toward the door. “And this is one of the few times I can tell my settlement leader to get lost and let me work.”
Taryn stood. “If you need me, I’ll be in the outside garden.”
“Fine, fine. Just go. You’re making it hard to concentrate.” Nova looked up with a smile. “And you’re also delaying my next project.”
“Do I want to know?”
“It’s called Operation Fun Times.” Nova pointed her quill. “I sense you’re going to land an alien this time. You’re a talented individual, except when it comes to flirting. I’m going to help with that.”
Shaking her head, Taryn muttered, “Have fun,” and left her old-time friend to her own devices. Maybe someday Nova would understand that while Taryn missed the antics of their youth, she enjoyed taking care of her people more.
Still, she’d admit that it would be nice to finally have the chance to get a man of her own. Most of her family was gone, and like many of the women of her age group, Taryn would love the option to start one.
Not now, Demara. You won’t have a chance unless you succeed in capturing the visitors.
With the play planning in motion, Taryn had one more important task to set up before she could also pore through the records and look for ideas.
As much as she wished for everything to go smoothly, it could take a turn and end up horribly wrong. In that case, she needed an out. Namely, she needed to erase memories. The trick would be conferring with her head medicine woman to find the balance between erasing memories and rendering the aliens brain-dead. As the early Jasvarians had discovered, the forgetful plant was both a blessing and a curse. Without it, they’d never have survived this long. However, in the wrong dose, it could turn someone into a vegetable and ruin their chances.
Don’t worry. Matilda knows what she’s doing. Picking up her pace, Taryn exited the mountain into the late-day sun. The faint purple and blue hues of the mountains and trees were an everyday sight to her, but she still found the colors beautiful. Her great-grandmother’s tales had been full of green leaves and blue skies back on Earth. A part of Taryn wanted to see another world, but the leader in her would never abandon the people of Jasvar.
Looking to the pinkish sky, she only hoped the visitors fell for her tricks. Otherwise, Taryn might have to admit defeat and prepare her people for the worst.
~~~
Prince Kason tro el Vallen of the royal line of Vallen stared at his ship’s main viewing screen. The blue, pink, and purple hues of the planet hid secrets Kason was determined to discover. After years of fighting his father’s wishes and then the ensuing days of travel from Keldera to the unnamed planet, he was anxious to get started.
Aaric, his head pilot, stated, “Ten hours until we pull into orbit, your highness.”