Endith sat on the arm of Tina's command seat, watching intently as Tina explained the controls of the Raptor to her. Ben had woken up to see this happening, and rose to get coffee for all of them, and allowed Endith to sit in his chair. She had sat wide eyed in the pilot's chair until Ben had returned with three mugs of coffee, one of which he handed to a surprised Endith. She watched him closely as he returned to his seat, but quickly realized that he and Tina were not the same as the humans she had dealt with in the past. They joked freely with each other, and seemed to share a special relationship that Endith had not seen between a male and female human before. Ben did not treat Tina as an inferior or as if she was beneath him, but as an equal.
"How… how long have you known the… Commander?" Endith blurted out.
"Who Marty…?" Tina asked. "Jeez! What's it been Ben, nine or ten years?"
"Eleven." Ben replied. "Remember… we dropped them off on the Iranian freighter in the middle of winter in the Bering Sea. It almost froze the fuel lines it was so cold."
Tina smiled. "That's right! We've been working exclusively with Martin and his team for the last nine years. We take them where they need to go, and we bring them back."
"It… it does not seem to bother you, knowing that he is not like you." Endith said gently, probing for a response.
"You mean that he is a genome?" Tina asked, looking at her.
Endith nodded slowly. "I apologize if I have offended you."
"There's nothing to apologize for." Ben told her. "You will find that most of the Raptor crews, and many of the humans on the transports are not like what you are used to Endith. Besides having someone save your life kind of over rules the normal reaction."
"He saved your life?" Endith questioned.
"He saved both our asses." Tina spoke. "We had just dropped them off for a mission in Saudi Arabia. Our bird took fire and we went down hard. Ben broke both his legs and I broke my arm and some ribs. We were in pretty bad shape. And the bad guys were bearing down on us hard. It was a black operation, so no one knew we were down, and no one was going to come for us."
"They would have left you to die?" Endith asked surprised.
"That was the nature of our business back then." Ben explained. "We accepted it."
"What happened?"
"Martin disobeyed orders." Tina told her. "When he found out we had gone down he disregarded his mission orders and came for us. He and his team carried us out of the country over two hundred miles of desert and rock. Took us almost two weeks, but he wouldn't leave us behind."
Ben nodded. "The powers that be were not happy at all. They tried to get Martin in a court martial, but that didn't pan out. They busted him down a rank though, which he earned back in three months." Ben finished with a chuckle. "Marty may be a genome, and not completely human, but there is no one you'd want on your side more than him. He'll go right to the wall for you if he thinks you're right. He doesn't have many friends outside of the team, but Tina and I, and most of the Raptor flight crews, well we would follow him straight to hell if he asked us too. He's saved many of them as well."
"It does not bother you that… that he changes. That he becomes…" Endith stopped when they looked at her.
"You mean that he can change into something resembling a wolf?" Tina finished her question for her. Tina smiled and looked at Endith. "We are not like the humans you know Endith." She said. "Martin has saved most of our lives at one point or another. We would do anything for him because he cares about his people. We had our differences sure, but the humans before… before the comet came were much more tolerable than they appear to be now."
"Look at you." Ben spoke with a grin. "You're not human. You're an elf! You are something that from where we come from only existed in books and movies. You hang around Martin long enough you learn to expect the unexpected. If everything you have told us is true, and we have no reason to doubt it one bit after what we have seen so far, then we aren't going to be inviting these Alliance pricks over for dinner anytime soon trust me."
"But elves… we were made for the purpose of serving humans. The Holy One created us to… female elves were created to be irresistible to human males. The Holy One hoped that if we mated and produced children, it would extend the longevity for the entire planet." Endith told them. "You… don't seem affected in any way."
Ben looked at her. "How do you know that?" He asked.
"You have… you have not looked at me in… I mean…" Endith shook her head in frustration.
Tina smiled and placed her hand on Endith's arm. "We are affected Endith." She said softly, "Both of us." This announcement caused Endith's eyes to grow larger. "However, we have enough will power and self control to not act like humans you are used too."
"Yes sir!" Ben spoke. "I think your ears are damn sexy, and the ways your eyes kind of catch the light, and you have a killer body that…"
"Ben!" Tina warned with a smile on her face.
"That's almost as good as my lovely co-pilot here." Ben finished his sentence quickly.
Endith couldn't help but smile at their playful banter and she looked at Tina. "You… you both find me attractive?" She asked softly.
"Yes." Tina answered her honestly. And for Tina it was quite a revelation as well. "But we are also nothing like the humans you are used to. Give us time and we'll show you that. All of us."
"That… that sounds very intriguing," Endith told her. "I will…"
The quiet beeping caused Ben to sit up in his seat and turn fully towards his controls. "Well look at that… someone is trying to track us."
Tina also turned to her controls, her hands moving quickly and efficiently over her consoles. "I'm picking up three search radars! They haven't painted us yet, but our range is decreasing!"
"Type?" Ben asked.
"They look like old style X-band TA systems!" Tina spoke calmly.
Ben turned as another beeped sounded. "Shit! They're trying to track our transponders!"
"Something isn't right though!" Tina exclaimed. "They aren't synching up!"
"Screw it!" Ben spoke. "Raptor Flight this is Raptor lead! Pull your transponders! Take them right out of the circuit boards!" As he spoke, Ben was reaching between their two seats where he flipped open a small panel and Endith could see the small box device with what appeared to be a handle on it. Ben took the handle and pulled. "Fuck! It's jammed!" Ben snapped, putting both hands on the hand and trying to heave.
"Shit!" Tina spoke. "Ten seconds before the transponder locks us!"
Endith reached down and took hold of the handle on the box and used her elf strength to yank the box out of the panel it where it was being obstinate about coming out. Ben looked at her as she held it out to him with a small smile. Tina looked at her, then at Ben and they both smiled.
"Thank you." Ben spoke.
"You're welcome." Endith told him.
"Why don't you go upstairs and get Martin and your Queen." Ben said. "We'll be entering the atmosphere in about fifteen minutes."
Endith nodded and moved to comply. Ben looked at Tina for a brief moment before turning back to his controls.
"What happens now?" Tarifa asked in a soft voice.
Martin sat on the carpeted floor with his back against the couch. They had gotten half dressed and Tarifa wore only her fatigue top, while Martin wore just his pants. She sat between his legs, leaning up against his chest. At Tarifa's question Martin lowered his head and nuzzled her ear, inhaling her scent.
"I don't have the foggiest idea." He told her honestly.
"Your Admiral left you in charge of these people Martin." She spoke, her hand stroking his bare arm. "You must protect them. If Graham contacted Minister Deval as he said, they will come looking for you."
"This old base we are going to?" Martin asked. "Is it secure?"
Tarifa nodded. "It will be for a time. It is on the very edge of High Elf territory." She replied, turning in his arms to look into his handsome face. "And very few people of any kind venture into the area. How long will you be able to last with the supplies from your ships?"
Martin thought about that for a moment. "Six months at the most." He answered. "And that's if we ration everything."
Tarifa looked at him for a long minute. "I know of a place." She told him finally. "It is close to our main community, hidden in a deep valley. The Alliance has been unable to find it because they fear coming into the Timber. My people are at their strongest in the deep forests and Timber. It has adequate requirements of food and water, and enough space to establish the beginnings of a colony, at least initially. Your people will need more however."
Martin nodded. "I was going over the manifests of the people who left EDEN before you interrupted me." He told her with a smile. Tarifa blushed even under her dark tan, and she snuggled closer to his chest. "Many of the men and women who left were tops in their fields, all kinds of scientists and research people."
"There are dozens of human settlements west of the Zone." Tarifa spoke. "Some of them are more open than others, but none of them have dealings with the Alliance."
"Yet they all have slaves?" Martin asked.
Tarifa nodded her head slowly. "It is what… it is what we were created for Martin."
Martin shook his head. "No… you were created to help the human race survive." He said. "Not become slaves to their every sadistic whim."
"Will you allow me to help you?" Tarifa asked him.
Martin looked at her surprised. "Of course I will." He answered. "I have never been in charge of so many people. This type of position is very new to me. You are a Queen to millions of elves. I would be foolish to not accept your help and council."
"It will bring you against those that are our enemies Martin." Tarifa spoke softly. "There are people who would not normally be against you."
Martin took her face in his hands and looked deeply into her eyes. "I do not believe in what the Alliance has done, nor do I have sympathy for those who accept that way of life. If they are your enemies, then they are my enemies."
Tarifa kissed him hard, her hand reaching up to stroke his face. They both heard the door slid open and Martin detected Endith's scent come up the stairs.
"My… my Queen," Her voice reached out tentatively.
Tarifa closed her eyes in disgust at the interruption and turned. "I am here Endith." She spoke.
They watched Endith walked fully onto the deck, but neither of them made any move to cover themselves, or the fact that they had obviously been having sex. To Endith's credit, she didn't bat an eye.
"Tarifa… Ben asks that you and the Commander join us on the flight deck." Endith spoke. "We will be entering the atmosphere in a few minutes."
Tarifa nodded. "We will be down in a few minutes." She said.
Endith nodded, and turned quickly making her way back down the stairs in a rush. Tarifa looked at Martin, his eyes bright.
"There is no way we could just fly off into the stars I suppose?" She asked.
Martin smiled and got to his feet pulling her with him. He enveloped her in his arms and kissed her deeply.
"One day we will have what we both seek, no matter what it is or with who." He told her. "I promise you that."
Tarifa smiled. "I will hold you to that Martin."