When Earth Reigned Supreme (The Human Chronicles Saga Book 12) Read Online Free Page B

missions just like this one. All it took was the mention of the Queen—the target—and Adam’s silly grin—confirmation—for Riyad to know.
    He sat down on a nearby metal bench and stared at Adam. “It would have to be through the Klin portal. It was linked to the Queen’s Chambers before, and the scalies have probably rebuilt the portal on their side by now. But how do we get into the Klin ship?” His eyes grew wide again. “The one at your house. It must have survived!”
    Adam nodded, not only for confirmation, but also for the admiration he felt for Riyad at that moment. His powers of deduction were truly amazing.
    Riyad pursed his lips and shrugged. “It makes sense that they would want the two of us to lead such a mission. But as straightforward the entry may be, I’m at a loss as to how we could get out? I hope you have some ideas about that.”
    “I’m working on it. So…are you in?”
    “Are you kidding? I get to live out the fantasy of nearly every guy who’s had a bad relationship. I get to kill my ex…and get away with it—hopefully.”
    Adam laughed. “I’m sure that line of thinking goes both ways, buddy, maybe even more so from the opposite side. Don’t you know that every breakup is the man’s fault?”
    “That’s what I’ve heard…far too many times.”
    “I just hope you don’t have second thoughts when the time comes to pull the trigger.”
    “It will be difficult, for sure, but I’ll do my best to resist the inner conflict for the good of the mission.”
    “Far out, dude. Now let’s go bag ourselves a queen.”
     
    ********
     
    Andy Tobias, Admiral of the Joint Union Defense Service fleet, was livid upon hearing the news that his two most competent officers were leaving the ship. He insisted on knowing why, and as he held position at the very top of Union military leadership, nothing was held back.
    His bluster didn’t last long once he realized the significance of the mission and the prospects for a safe return by the team. If anything went south, there would be no black helicopters in the night coming to their rescue. But what could go wrong? They’d just be isolated in a completely foreign universe swarming with trillions of flesh-eating aliens, and more than likely with every escape route shut down the moment they appeared.
    “You’re going to have to make it to a transport portal, one of the big boys. That will involve commandeering a starship. And take plenty of backup batteries for the beam neutralizers. No telling how long you’re going to be over there—”
    Adam grasped Tobias by his shoulder. The man was losing weight at an alarming rate, probably from the stress of command. At least that was Adam’s hope. Tobias was sixty-eight years old, and although he could still go up against men half his age, time had a way of defeating even the strongest warrior.
    “We’ll be okay, Andy. I promise. The Sol-Kor won’t be expecting this, so we’ll have the element of surprise on our side.”
    Andy shook his head. “I have every confidence you can achieve your primary mission. It’s what happens afterwards that I’m worried about.”
    “I think it’s the Sol-Kor who should be worried, Admiral. You know how deadly a trapped animal can be. We’ll deliver a little shock and awe on their asses and see what they think about that.”
    “You be careful. You too, Riyad. I’ve grown rather fond of you bastards over the years.”
    “Don’t go all mushy on us, Admiral,” Riyad said. “Your strength and bullheadedness has been a constant throughout the years. Just promise to kick our butts if we don’t make it back alive. That should be incentive enough for us not to get ourselves killed.”
    Andy nodded. No other words were said, just some hugs and handshakes. Then the pair left.
     
    ********
     
    Andy Tobias stared at the closed door of his cabin for a long moment afterwards. He’d spent a lifetime in military service, with countless men under his command