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permission. Still, for an older D’Aire like Arik, it was almost impossible not to pick up impressions just being around someone. Sensing Serra’s tumultuous emotions, Arik had felt something else in the chaos.
    Something that he hadn’t sensed in years, and it disturbed him to a level he couldn’t even begin to describe.
    Sensing the impatience flowing off of Jax and Archer, Arik knew it was time for answers. “I believe I need to begin with some background to explain this. Years ago, before the D’Aire knew of Earth, we had made contact with the Helios when we traveled to Helix. Although they had welcomed us and we have good relations with them still, there were things back then that were…troubling to us.”
    “Troubling how?” High Commander Newgate asked.
    “As you now know, it is a world that is primarily jungle, and its people are wild. No matter how civilized they seem, there is a feral quality to them if provoked. That feral quality also applies to their home world. Their jungle is not some place you ever want to venture unescorted. Back then there were also several plant specimens that worried us when we saw the affects of them at work. Over time, most of those have been eradicated, but there are always a few that slip through the cracks. I sense something in Serra that I haven’t felt in a very long time. If I’m right, she has been tainted with xili .”
    “It’s a mind-altering drug used to implant suggestions into the user,” Serra explained before anyone could ask. “I’ve studied it. I’ve read a lot about different flora and fauna species of the planets I’ve visited, but I’ve never taken xili . Especially not after knowing the side effects of the drug. That is to say, if I could even find it. Even then, I wouldn’t take it.”
    “Not knowingly,” Jax said, his voice deadly quiet. He focused his steel-grey eyes on Arik. “You’re saying you think someone fucked with her mind, aren’t you? How can you tell?”
    “Only the D’Aire are able to sense the void left in someone who has been tainted by xili .”
    “Why weren’t we told about your ability if this drug is a threat to us?” Regent Wyland-Ross demanded.
    “It isn’t something that is commonly known, and we have thought the drug had been destroyed long ago.”
    “Apparently, you were wrong,” High Commander Newgate said, then he sighed. “This is a clusterfuck of epic proportions if there has been a resurgence of this damn drug.”
    “This is a nightmare,” Regent Wyland-Ross agreed. “We’re already dealing with a crisis with the stealth technology, now this? We could all be in danger.”
    “Well, it’s not like that is anything new. Why would today be any different?” Archer asked.
    Regent Wyland-Ross was not amused. “This isn’t a joke, Commander Archer.”
    “Of course it isn’t, but I wouldn’t feel normal if someone wasn’t trying to kill me on a daily basis,” Archer added dryly. “I wouldn’t know what to do with myself otherwise.”
    “You have a very twisted sense of humor, Archer,” Regent Spartan said, frowning.
    “He always did,” Serra said, smiling up at him.
    Regent Spartan shook his head at them. “We need to have a meeting with Ambassador Tala of Helix and Ambassador M’Dor about this. This could damage all our species if someone is using this to control people.”
    Arik nodded. “It would be recommended. Ambassador M’Dor would be well aware of the ramifications.”
    “What does this mean for Serra? Is this dangerous for her?” Jax asked, gripping Serra’s hand in his as if he wanted to shield her from anything that would dare harm her.
    “I know you called me here to ask me to perform a truth test, but there is a way to counteract the drug…”
    “Then do it,” Archer ordered.
    “It isn’t that simple. I can aid you,” Arik said softly to Serra. “But only if you consent to it, and you must be sure. You would have to let me do a mind scan so we can discover what