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figured they were mechanical. Dear Lord. What was this thing? It looked like a demon. My palms started to sweat. I stood perfectly still and took shallow breaths. I was afraid to make any movement that might somehow irk it and cause it to vaporize me as it did Zaric’s knife. I waited while it came closer to study my face. It looked so deeply into my eyes it was as though it was searching for my soul. Then, without warning, it jetted its head and upper body around my left side and glided up to my ear, before swinging around to my right. It was frightening to see how fast it moved. It appeared to be double jointed at the waist and neck. It took all my strength not to pull away. I wanted to run. After a short pause, it straightened its back and returned to its previous stance.
    “Proceed,” it said.
    Finally.
    I exhaled and took a few steps forward and waited for Gaelan to be cleared for entry.
    I gave Gaelan a nudge on the arm after we cleared the guard. I was still shaking inside. “That was unbelievably creepy. What was it looking for?”
    “You got me. Maybe it sensed you weren’t from this quadrant of the galaxy.”
    “You could have warned me.”
    Gaelan grinned. “What? And take away all of my fun. No way. I like seeing your face when you do something for the first time.”
    “My inexperience never bores you.”
    “Never.”
    “I’m so glad I can amuse you.”

CHAPTER 4

    TRADING POST
     
    The place was bustling with activity and surprisingly pretty. A coffered ceiling made of dark wood rose high above our heads, making the place feel ritzy, almost formal and castlelike. It looked to be decorated for the holidays because it had strings of white lights fastened to the grooves in the ceiling tiles. The dangling loops formed rows and reminded me of endless ocean waves. Long wooden tables with matching benches were scattered throughout the vast area filled with assorted aliens socializing and walking about in every direction. I had never seen so many different beings in all my life. We walked by a short green lizard creature with spikes covering its head and spine, walking on all fours. And we passed a group of bearlike beasts squawking loudly from one of the tables, as well as a few human looking robots moving between the aisles. Absurd. Suddenly, I became grateful for my friends’ earlier coaching. The last thing I wanted was to have the astonishment show on my face. I concentrated on looking fearless and copied Gaelan’s posture as he strode confidently through the crowd. Pretending to be bold helped me keep my true emotions in check.
    “Sami, is it what you expected?” Azil asked.
    “No.” My voice broke—even though little was shocking me these days. “I never expected to see anything like this,” I admitted.
    Urit pointed to an area with rows of tables covered in piles of merchandise. It looked like a giant flea market. “Let’s check out the marketplace. Maybe we’ll run into someone we know,” he said with hope.
    He maneuvered us through the aisles with ease, occasionally pausing to glance down at some of the items. Clearly, he knew the place well.
    We were approached by an eager salesclerk. “Are you searching for anything in particular?”
    He was sort of human looking except for being overly hairy on his face and arms. He also had little beady eyes that were too close together and long black talons for fingernails that could use a good trim.
    “Yes,” Urit said politely. “Have you seen any Dreons come through here?”
    “Dreons?” replied the clerk. “No, not recently, and I am here all the time.”
    Urit looked down at the merchandise with a solemn expression. Suddenly, his face brightened and so did the storekeeper’s.
    “We just got those in,” he informed him.
    “Really? They’re fantastic,” Urit said.
    “Top of the line,” cheered the salesman.
    Gaelan shook his head. “Doing some shopping, Urit?” Gaelan said as though it was to be expected.
    Urit grinned and was