Arach by C.M. Simpson (books to read for 12 year olds TXT) 📕

It was nice to know I’d managed to confound her.

“Yeah, laugh it up shit-for-brains…” but she sounded distracted, and I got the impression she had turned away from the comms console and was conversing with one of the crew. “K’Kavor? What would the arach want here?”

I was guessing that question wasn’t addressed to me, so I waited. It didn’t take long for Delight to come back on the line. When she did, she came straight to the point.

“How far have you got with your investigation?”

“We had a likely location for the arach infiltration team, but it’s probably empty, now.”

“What do you mean ‘empty’?”

“I mean they probably saw us on-way, and bugged out of wherever they were using as a base, when we changed course to rescue a settlement being attacked by an arach incursionary force.”

“When you saw the opportunity to steal a drop-ship, you mean?”

“No. When she was ordered to intervene to help me save my people.” The queen’s voice cut like a knife through the communications, and I felt Delight’s attention sharpen.

“Who is this?” she asked.

“I am Queen…” and I could not follow the pattern of sound the queen used to represent her name. “You may call me Queen Tekravzary, or your Majesty, whichever is easier.”

And if that wasn’t enough to make Delight choke on her coffee, then I didn’t know what would. I heard the agent sputter, and then recover.

“And how, exactly, are you on this line?”

I could feel the queen’s amusement, but was pretty sure it wouldn’t translate over the comm link. Given how well Delight handled surprises, that was probably all for the best. The queen’s answer would be disconcerting enough.

“We are psi. I am in Cutter’s head, so I may speak with you.”

The way she said it made it sound like I’d been complicit in planning this ambush. I rolled my eyes. I never could stand politics of state! I could, however, stand to listen to the queen schooling Delight on the proper etiquette of calling a world’s leader and alerting them to the danger now approaching their planet.

“We were hoping to keep Odyssey’s arrival on-planet, a secret,” Delight told her.

The queen was firm.

“Unfortunately, my people need to know they are not alone—and that includes my human allies.”

“Ah, Cutter?” Tens said, just before Delight responded to a voice barely heard in the background of her link.

“What?”

“There’s another ship coming in. Looks like a battle cruiser.”

“Tell me it’s not arach.”

“No can do, kiddo. That thing is definitely arach. About the only thing I can say with any sort of surety is that. It could be a transport.”

“In which case, it will be heavily armed and armored,” the vespis queen said. “They protect their cargoes like a pirate guards his treasure. A battle cruiser would be preferable; it has less armor.”

“I have called for back-up,” Delight said. “Your Majesty, do you know what tactics they might use?”

“They will seek to address the insult we have handed them by first taking back this ship, and then killing us to avenge their kinsmen, and then they will take the station and anything else in-system.”

“What ships do you have?”

“None, but there is a freighter docked,” the queen said, and I remembered the conversation where she had been refused the loan of the station shuttles. “The colony will not release it until its cargo has been transferred, and then they will not want to release it, until the colony’s own shipments are loaded. I can order it freed from the dock.”

“No,” Delight said. “The arach will hunt it down, and a running ship is harder to get back than one in dock. Can you ask the station to lock everything down? Also, if the shuttles are on-station, get them planetside. The harder it is for the arach to transition between the two, the better. If there are no shuttles to commandeer, they will have to use their own, or coerce those planetside to provide them. I trust you can ensure that does not happen?”

“I can ask my people to refuse them; the humans may have to be… convinced.”

“I am looking at your history, now, and I understand. Odyssey will stand by your decision.”

“Let us hope it does not come to that,” the queen replied.

Delight, when she answered, was surprisingly somber.

“We will teleport aboard as soon as we are in range. Our experience with the arach shows they do not yet have that capability. Is this your experience?”

“I have never seen arach use teleportation,” the queen said.

“Have you seen it used?”

I thought briefly about when the Shady was boarded, but they paid it no attention.

“Only in movies, and that only once. The humans have a fondness for classic science fiction. Is your teleport similar?”

“We appear in a column or ball of silver light,” Delight replied. “Please make sure your people are aware. We do not wish to be killed by those we’ve come to help.”

“It shall be so,” the queen said. “I will ask the humans here to show us what a teleported being looks like on arrival. They will share their memories, and we will hopefully be able to avoid any unfortunate mishaps.”

“Thank you, your Majesty. And, speaking of unfortunate mishaps, I see an arach in the control room.”

I heard Askavor hiss in displeasure, and then listened as his voice cut into the communications line.

“We are not arach. We are the weavers. Our home is K’Kavor. No other. And we will fight to prevent it becoming a residence for abominations such as those approaching our world, now.”

Delight snorted, managing to convey pure disbelief.

“Now, tell me why we would accept the world of a spider?”

“Because weavers are as much prey in an arach incursion as the vespis or humans, are. Arach spare no-one, enslaving and devouring all they can reach. Weavers become nothing more than a way to breed a more versatile arach warrior,” Askavor replied.

“He is one of my people, here as I.T. support,” the queen explained. “Cutter can verify how valuable he