Page 48 of The Alien's Major Dilemma

They were met by most of the soldiers on the base as he hobbled down the ramp and half a dozen of them started talking at once. It was all overwhelming to him but Marissa answered questions for both of them.

He was still disoriented and definitely not at the top of his game so he used the time to try and get a feel for the minds around him instead. He wasn't looking for any particular information, more a read on the general attitudes of those who had him at their mercy.

Most of the brains were ones he had a passing familiarity with, they'd been here the last time he was, and they showed mostly concern about Marissa and what was going to happen next. There were some new ones, as well, and most of them were unremarkable.

Except for one.

The uppermost thoughts were similar to the rest of the soldiers, normal human concerns and reactions, but when they focused on him, it was like a bed of snakes had slithered into their mind and covered any other thoughts they'd had. They slid away just as quickly and Cooper couldn't figure out who they belonged to but he recognized the pattern.

He was a scout, skilled at acting on his own and gathering information, with enough ability to stay behind enemy lines for a short period of time without getting caught. Most of his clutch had become scouts, with a few going into the support roles that made their jobs easier.

When they were learning about infiltration, however, they'd been in a class with Chelion who were going to be handlinglong-term infiltration. He hadn't thought there was anything particularly remarkable about them until they had to practice on each other.

Every now and then, he'd catch the dry, dangerous rustle of the same twisting bed of snakes in their thoughts. He'd never found out what they were but when they came forward, something in their eyes changed, and they became better, faster, and more ruthless. Once or twice, he felt them trying to send them into his mind.

He could send suggestions, read surface thoughts and use them to adapt and learn, but he couldn't control anybody. The snake thoughts could and most of his nightmares involved them getting into his head and taking control of his body and mind.

Cooper turned to John. "We need to get to a secure room to debrief."

John opened his mouth to protest then nodded. He signaled to the people peppering Marissa with questions and what had been a slightly chaotic welcome turned into a slightly rushed march into a part of the base he hadn't tried to get into before.

They were taken into separate rooms and Cooper breathed a sigh of relief at the security measures he could see in place.

Cooper?Marissa reached out to him.

We're almost done,he reassured her.Tell them everything you know and I will see you shortly.

There was a single chair on one side of the table, and three on the other. None of them were comfortable but he didn't really mind. He took the chair that was obviously meant for him and leaned forward so John could undo his restraints.

Three men came into the room and sat down and another guard took up his position on the other side of the door from John. Five humans to deal with him.

The one sitting directly across from him cleared his throat and adjusted the papers in his hand.

"Alright, let's start with your name. Your actual name."

Cooper grinned.

Chapter 21

The debrief went almost how Marissa expected. She confirmed who she was, that she hadn't been compromised, and what exactly had happened with Cooper. They made notes about what she knew about being matched with him and how he'd kept her alive and sane while they were underground.

She could tell they were concerned about an alien who could read her mind if she let him. It was a security concern if nothing else and she could see her clearances and any hope of promotion vanishing as she talked. Somehow, that didn't bother her as much as it would have in the past.

"How are the Orvax handling the loss of their communication device?" she asked.

The Base Commander sighed. "Better than expected but they're using it to push for a few things. Most of which wouldn'tbe a problem in any sane world but we're getting push back from places I hadn't expected it."

"The creatures who kidnapped us have been doing this a very long time," Marissa mused. "And the girl who was trying to save me had worked with a lot of human women before me. They have to have contacts in the human world."

"What kind of contacts are you thinking?"

Marissa grinned. "You know how we're always joking about the government being run by lizard people?"

The Commander made a face. "I hate that you might actually be right. It would explain some of what's going on with Captain LaGrange."

"Is he-"

"Being evacuated to the Orvax ship as soon as they're done here. They were running a rescue mission of their own, from what I understand, and had the shuttle nearby."

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