Fleet Commander Vorik stood at the large window in the council room, looking down at the glowing blue planet. Grief seeped from every pore. Council Leader Tosh's order to clean out the tunnels with the chemical incinerator killed everything down there. He could think of no way that they could have fought against it.

The door to the council room slid open smoothly, and Council Leader Tosh entered, surrounded by his men. He had a wide grin on his face, malicious glee in his eyes. He was pleased with the outcome of the tunnels' cleanout. "It appears the tunnels are cleaned out. All we have to do now is search the rest of the planet for human survivors and kill them before our people form any more of an attachment to them than they already are."

Vorik gritted his teeth, trying desperately to remain calm. Without looking at the Council Leader, he spoke evenly. "It wasn't an attachment. Our people found their fated mates among them. It was a sacred bond. Even our own laws prevent us from doing anything to hinder that bond. Not only have you defiled the sacred bond, but nearly every human female with one of our own as a mate was pregnant. All of them within a few weeks of meeting each other."

"And yours?" Council Leader Tosh shot out, laughing. "Was your mate pregnant too?"

Commander Vorik flinched at Tosh's laughter. It was clear that Tosh thought it was a joke, something to laugh at, that all those children waiting to be born who had died were funny. Disgust for his leader filled him.

"I don't know if Alice was or not," Vorik responded coolly. Still not looking at his superior. He couldn't. The only thing he wanted to do regarding his leader was to see him die.

Council Leader Tosh headed toward the exit. "Now that the problem has been taken care of, go back to the city and search for zombies that might have gotten into the dome. You and I both know that the tunnel system was not cleaned out for zombies."

After the door slid smoothly closed, Commander Vorik was left alone. Tosh's men were no longer following him.

Pressing his comm link, Vorik called his pilot, Merrick, to the hangar so he could follow Council Leader Tosh's orders and search the city for zombies.

Twenty minutes later, Commander Vorik was in the co-pilot seat, watching the blue planet grow larger as they approached the glowing blue orb.

For once, he was alone in the shuttle with Merrick. Only the new co-pilot was there. Since Copilot Lera had to go to the tunnels with her mate, Pilot Merrik was given a new one. He was assigned the position by one of the men under Council Leader Tosh. Knowing this, Vorik didn't want to speak in front of the new co-pilot. He didn't know if he was loyal to Tosh. Pilot Merrick was also silent, telling him that he didn't trust the co-pilot either.

"I need your co-pilot to keep the shuttle prepared," Vorik stated, loud enough for the co-pilot to hear. "I have been given the order to search the city for zombies that may have escaped the tunnel before the Chemical incineration. Due to the danger of encountering them, I need you to accompany me."

"Yes, Sir," Pilot Merrick stated formally. "There have been sightings near the tunnel entrance. It is possible that one of those residents in the closest homes to the entrance saw something. We can go there first." He suggested. He was careful to keep his demeanor formal.

Commander Vorik nodded, not even looking at his pilot. "Once we speak with them, we will do a sweep of the entire city from the entrance to the opposite side of the dome. Have the guards keep an eye out for zombies. We don't want any of our people getting infected. It would be catastrophic."

In the reflection on the glass, Vorik noticed the co-pilot was trying to lean closer, paying close attention to what was said. His suspicions were confirmed. He was right; The co-pilot was one of Tosh's men.

Commander Vorik turned and looked at the co-pilot. "Have you seen or heard of any sightings of zombies since the tunnel's incineration?" he asked.

The co-pilot stuttered for a second. "No, sir," he stated. He hadn't expected to be addressed by the Fleet Commander.

Vorik nodded at the co-pilot. "Be sure to go in pairs if you go into the city. It's too dangerous to go alone. If you get infected, there is no going back from it. There is nothing you can do to cure it. They are flesh-eaters. All of them. A single bite or scratch will be enough to infect you." Then he added. "They prefer living flesh. One bite will infect you," Vorik warned. Trying his best to make the co-pilot afraid to go out alone. "If you need to find us in the city, take someone with you and have your weapon ready at all times."

"Where will you be if I need to find you?" the co-pilot asked cautiously. It was clear he was trying not to be obvious about getting information. He wasn't very good at it. His job was to help fly the shuttle, nothing more. It was not customary to speak to their passengers unless asked a question.

Vorik, knowing what the co-pilot was attempting, decided to tell him. "We're starting at the tunnel entrance and working our way out. The only way they could have gotten inside the dome is through the tunnel, unless there is a breach somewhere in the dome itself."

"Perhaps, sir, I should go instead?" the co-pilot offered. His voice was a bit shaky; he knew he was going too far, but continued anyway.

"No," Vorik stated. "Pilot Merrick has fought against zombies before and knows how to deal with them. Have you fought any?"

The co-pilot visibly swallowed. "No, Sir."

"I need the shuttle ready to leave as soon as I need to leave. I need one of you with me. Pilot Merrick has fought zombies before. You have not. I need to get this sweep of the city over with and as quickly as possible." Vorik finished. "If I didn't need the shuttle ready, I would take both of you. These things are dangerous, and the more of us we have to fight them, the better."

"Yes, Sir." The co-pilot stated as he frowned.

Once they landed, Vorik ignored Merrick, knowing they were being watched. As he suited up for battle, he made sure he had all his weapons. Once fitted with everything he needed, he left the shuttle and headed to the homes nearest to the tunnel entrance. Pilot Merrick followed close behind.

Once out of range, Merrick whispered to Vorik, not looking at him. "The co-pilot is following us."

"I figured he would," Vorik stated evenly. His voice was barely a whisper.

They headed to the first home and knocked on the door. "It was Van."

"Private Van, there have been sightings of zombies inside the city. Have you seen any evidence of their presence?" he asked him formally.

Van understood the formality and gave the gesture of respect before speaking. "No, Sir. I have not seen any."

"Be vigilant in watching your surroundings. Council Leader Tosh reported that there have been sightings inside the dome." Vorik stated, before turning away and going to the next house.

The co-pilot was watching them from behind one of the small dwellings. He was not doing very well at hiding himself.

After Vorik and Merrik visited all of the residences in the surrounding area, they worked their way out, notifying the populace that there were zombie sightings and to watch for them. The co-pilot stuck close to them the entire time.

"I think this is a ruse," Merrick whispered so low that even Vorik could hardly hear. "I think the co-pilot is supposed to report any familiarity between you and any of the residents. I don't believe there have been any sightings whatsoever."

"I agree," Vorik stated quietly, not looking at Merrick. "We need to complete our task and let Tosh's spy report."

Once they had notified everyone and searched the area, they went back to the tunnel.

"Search around the entrance for evidence that any of the zombies were able to get out," Vorik ordered, loud enough for the co-pilot to hear. He was being all business. He didn't want the co-pilot to know that he and Merrick were actually friends.

After twenty minutes of searching, Merrick reported. "Nothing, Sir. No sign that they came into the dome from here."

"We need to check for breaches in the dome," Vorik stated. "Notify the border guards to search the dome in their area for a breach. We're going to have to find a vehicle to drive along the border and search. I won't leave it to just them."

"Yes, Sir," Merrick stated formally, and took out his everyday comm link and spoke into it. He made sure that the co-pilot heard every word. He didn't want to give him anything to report.

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