Rise of the Forgotten: Warp Riders 3 by Scott Baron

Author:Scott Baron [Baron, Scott]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-06-28T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Three

Waking up wrapped in a blanket of living alien flesh was surprisingly not quite as claustrophobic as Sadira had thought it might be. Perhaps it was the cooling suit she wore beneath the meat suit that kept her from feeling overwhelmed, or maybe it was the neuro-stim doing its work, making the ersatz body feel as though it was her own, at least somewhat.

Whatever the reason, she met the morning with resolve.

Okay, Sadi. This is it, she thought just before swinging her feet to the rungs leading down to the ground. Time to put on those acting shoes and blend in. She didn’t allow herself to hesitate any further. It was shit or get off the pot time, and she really didn’t have an option.

“You are new here,” a wiry male said as soon as her feet hit the floor. “We have not met. I am Vormiin.”

Of course someone would be hitting on her first thing in the morning, she lamented. But then she saw the situation for what it was. Beyond being annoying, that is. It was an opportunity.

“It is good to meet you, Vormiin,” she replied with proper Chithiid grammar, as she’d practiced for years. “I am Sadira.”

“When did you arrive? I did not see you with any of our teams yesterday.”

“That is because I was a late transfer,” she replied, seamlessly slipping into the story she had begun fabricating as soon as their infiltration looked like it would become a reality. “But I was given poor information,” she said, placing her hand on his arm. “Perhaps you can be of assistance. I was told a work team had lost someone and I was to come bolster their numbers. But I cannot determine which group they meant.”

Sadira wasn’t entirely sure how well her microservo-controlled face would relay the expression, but she flashed him what she hoped was a smile. Judging by Vormiin’s slight blush, it had worked. She just hoped she hadn’t overdone it.

“Oh, that is fortuitous,” the man said. “It was Naamik’s team that fell short one worker.”

“Fantastic. Can you point me in their direction?”

“I can do one better than that. I also work with Naamik. Come, let us get breakfast, and I will introduce you to the others.”

Sadira couldn’t believe her good luck. And now she would get to see just how awkward eating with a fake face on would be. That, and how bad the local cuisine was on this world. Given the Chithiid were normally herbivorous on their own planet thanks to the extremely high protein content of plant life there, she was hopeful that even if the food was not terribly exciting, at least it would not cause gastric distress. That was the last thing she wanted to start her infiltration.

Fortune was smiling upon her that day and the food was both satisfying and easy on the stomach. More than that, Naamik seemed thrilled to have received a replacement worker so quickly. Apparently, it sometimes took weeks, if not months to fill a vacancy, and productivity quotas were not adjusted even if your team lost a member.

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