Chapter 146
"I’m not sure that’s something you want me to do." The scientist tilted his head and looked up at Dron.
"Why is that? Is it because what you’re saying has no basis. I know where I’m from to suggest that my lineage comes from a different planet just to make yourself seem important or the work you’re doing here more substantial is nothing more than a ploy. It’s all nonsense." Dron seethed.
"I assure you it’s not a ploy or some sort of way to make myself seem more important. Honestly, I could care less about where you are from. What I care about is finding out if my people can get there if needed. I’m not from Skoq. I’m from Thraqe too. I know all about the so called curse that everyone thinks you have. What I’m saying is a few generations ago, I’m not sure people would be so quick to think you were cursed. Also in a few years I’m pretty sure people with gilded beards will be considered cursed as well. It’s all just a matter of time. Past and future."
Dron blinked at the man in front of him.
He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
It sounded utterly ridiculous.
Before he could open his mouth to speak again the door to the front opened and Tine walked in.
"Ah, there you are. I trust you are not impeding my workers?" Tine looked down at the scientist who was already nose deep in another book.
"No, I was just listening to some of the nonsenses that is being spewed in this land. You know he had the nerve to suggest that I might be an alien."
"Part alien." The man said without looking up.
Tine looked from Dron to the man and then back again." And that would be a bad thing?"
Dron gasped and threw his hands up in the air, "Is that what’s keeping this place afloat. You’re filling peoples heads with all these fantastical ideas? None of us are aliens. We are all apart of this world and our families before us are part of this world. It’s borderline cruel to start telling people that they are from somewhere else just because they don’t like the fate of their lives here."
"I don’t think anyone was trying to be cruel but you have to think about it from a scientific standpoint. Of course we all believe that the moon goddess blessed us with this land. We’ve been given air to breathe, technology to learn, food to eat. We’ve been given everything we need to survive but what about the people before us? Where did they come from? Can it be possible that we didn’t just magically appear out of thin air? What if there was an evolution process? There are a million and one questions about how we came to be on this planet. Now that we know there are others out in the stars wouldn’t it be logical to think that the humans aren’t the first ones who made their way here?"
Dron wanted to argue. Problem is it’s not like he knew the answers to all of life questions. He couldn’t tell her without a doubt that something like that couldn’t happen. Tine was right. There was a time when he would have never thought that there was life in the stars but his own mate proved that wrong. She wasn’t from here. She was from a place called earth. A place that he’d never even heard of until then.
"I’m not going to argue about life with you. That’s not why I’m here. I’m here to find out what the people know about the poor class on Thraqe and why it was attacked. I’m here to finish my mission so I can go home." Dron breathed out a long sigh. It seemed as if this mission was getting him nowhere. He’d been here for days and was no closer in finding out the truth then he was when he first stepped foot on this island.
"Yes, I believe your right. Maybe you’re looking in the wrong places then."
Dron groaned loud, "I wouldn’t be looking in the wrong places if you would just tell me what I need to know."
"I can’t tell you. I don’t know what you need to know. But I can get you an audience. I’ve been talking with some of the refugees and they are willing to speak with you as long I can guarantee their safety and continued asylum."
He squinted his eyes at the woman, "Wait, they think I’m here to take them back?"
"Not necissarily, but they do think when you get back to Thraqe you will tell the higher ups where the community is and they will be ripped back to the hell they fought so hard to get away from."
"Never." Dron snapped out instantly.
It wasn’t so much that he cared where the people here came from but he knew what it was to finally find a sliver of peace. He wouldn’t jeopardize that. At least not if he had anything to say about it. For all the higher ups know, he could have come across these people in the middle of the woods. He wasn’t about to tell them that there was a fully functional town in the middle of Skoq. As if they didn’t already know and were trying to keep it a secret.
"That’s good to hear. Now I think it’s time you met up with the rest of your crew. I don’t think my shopkeepers can continue hosting them."
Dron got serious. He assumed his men were on their best behavior but from how Tine was talking maybe they were out here causing a ruckus. He needed to make sure they all had their heads on straight.
"Fine, I need to get out of here anyway. This place makes me uncomfortable." Dron shrugged his shoulders and started to walk out but the scientist had one last thing to say.
"Facing the unknown is always cause to be uncomfortable. Most people never find out the truth because they don’t want to know the truth."
Dron felt like it was a challenge. As if the man sitting there were saying he wasn’t strong enough to prove him wrong.
"I know the truth."
"You know what you’ve been told. The truth and stories aren’t always the same thing." The man said.
"Fine, you think you know better. Do as I asked...prove it."
"Dron, think about what you’re asking. You may uncover somethings that you are not ready for." Tine says from where she is standing by the door. She’s not trying to stop him. In fact, the smug look on her face made Dron feel like she didn’t think he would go through with it either.
They were all doubting him.
All thinking that he was too scared to know the truth.
He wasn’t.
"Do it." Dron said through clenched teeth.
The scientist looked up at him again before he quickly hopped up and gathered a few pieces of equipment. It was a simple blood draw. Only a small prick on his forearm, and then a few moments later it was over.
"So... the results?" Dron questioned as the scientist flipped the vial back and forth in between his fingers.
"What? Do you think I can tell what planet your people are from just from looking at your blood through a tube? No, it’s going to take some time. I’ll be here. Come see me in a few days."
Great, something else Dron would have to wait on.
"Are you finished?" Tine asked looking to both the scientist and Dron.
"Yeah, I guess so. That was not as eventful as I thought it would be." Dron shuffled from foot to foot.
"Don’t worry, this land is full of climaxes. I’m sure you’ll find another one." She smirked at him.
With that he, Tine and Krazek walked through the town and to a smaller shop. Before they even stepped foot in the shop, Dron could hear his men inside. They weren’t fighting but they were loud. They were having a good time.
Not exactly what should be going on in the middle of a mission.
"What the hell did you do to them?" Dron turned to Tine who seemed completely bewildered at what was going on.
"Oh, yeah, this seems like you’ve got everything under control." Krazek muttered. The snide remark wasn’t lost on Dron but he didn’t want to address it in the moment. It wasn’t like the man was wrong. Dron had to get them back under control.
"Come on. Let’s get them together." Dron said more to himself than anyone else. He didn’t want to be seen as the weak leader but falling ill to fated mate sickness wasn’t helping his cause in the least. The men would follow him until it seemed as if he couldn’t do what he was meant to do. The weakness could cause them to turn against him.
That’s not something that he could allow to happen. Even with the gnawing pain in his gut, the constant switches in paranoia. Dron would have to find a way to hide it all.
Dron walked into the small shop to find every last one of his men in some state of inebriation. Several of them had women on their laps while others played some sort of card game. They all saw him walk in but no one moved. They didn’t even acknowledge his presence. That’s how it starts.
"Soldiers at attention!" Krazek barked out before Dron could say anything, "Mark Chief Dron in attendance."
It was like a switch flipped in the room and all at once everyone jumped out of their seats. Some of the women tumbled to the floor at the sudden change. Cards went flying. Bottles toppled over.
Dron looked over to Krazek and nodded once. He wasn’t sure if the man was just trying to exert his own power of the crew or if he was genuinely helping him. Dron chose to see this as a turning point for the man who once questioned his ability to lead them all.
Not only had the soldiers all gone still and quiet but so had the other patrons in the bar. They stared at Dron and waited for him to make his move.
Dron took a breath, his alpha instincts began to flare. There were threats in every corner. At least that’s what it felt like. A man on the side behind the bar with his hand on a bottle. A woman with a hot bowl of food. A maid with a broom.
The second the thoughts entered his mind Dron knew it was the fated mate sickness. In what world would a maid with a broom be a threat?
He focused on the men standing at attention and slowly made his way to them.
"Is this what you were brought here for? What part of your mission involves you pawing at the local women?" Dron leveled his eyes on Zeqon who was staring straight ahead. The man was trying to stand at attention but it was clear that he’d had too much to drink. Every few seconds he’d sway just slightly.
"Maybe you need to be doing drills until your feet bleed to remind you that you are not here to have fun. This isn’t a vacation. We are on orders."
"You were incapacitated." Verux spoke up and Dron snapped his gaze in the man’s direction.
"Incapacitated or not, you are still soldiers and you know how to conduct yourself as such. Or are you saying you don’t have the proper training? You feeble minded in some way? Do we need to go back to the basics."
"No, Mark Chief!" Verux answered right away, snapping to better attention.
"Yes, I think that’s what is to happen. Basic training. Maybe a few dozen miles patrolling the lands of Skoq is just what you all need. Tonight. Before you sleep."
Dron could feel the tension in the room rising with every word that he spoke, but he knew if he backed down they would see him as weak. He didn’t want to do it, but there was truly no other way.
"Maybe we continue this after we’ve had our chat?" Tine whispers from behind Dron.
She was right; the punishment would have to wait. There were more important things for him to do. Namely finally get some answers.
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⏸ PAUSE■ STOP