Syn-En: Plague World: The Founders War Begins by Linda Andrews Page A

were desperate for a cure to save ourselves.”
    Nell pursed her lips. She guessed that was as close to an apology as the Skaperians would allow. Besides, hadn’t Nell been willing to exterminate the feather-heads to save Bei? Her hands weren’t exactly clean. “I suppose it worked out for the best in the end.”
    Smiling, Apollie cupped her knees. “Better. We are on Surlat.”
    Bei cocked an eyebrow. “How is that better?”
    “Surlat was a protected planet before the Plague hit. Few were ever allowed to visit.” Apollie licked her lips. “The Founders even wiped it off their official star charts. Our intelligence hinted that the sun-killer weapon had been developed here.”
    Resting her head against the bench back, Nell rubbed her eyes until stars appeared. Alien conspiracies. Deadly Plagues. Underhanded plots. And now this. She shouldn’t ask. She didn’t really want to know. “What is a sun-killer weapon?”
    “It’s a plug of lead that can breach a star’s magnetic field.” Apollie’s leg bounced. “It’s banned under the Erwar codicils.”
    Bei’s eyes widened. Doc whistled low.
    Well crap. Nell had missed something here. “Why is a lead bullet bad? Other than the whole shooting side of it.”
    Bei rubbed his temples. “The moment a molecule of lead forms in the fusion reactor of a star, the star begins to die. To artificially seed one, would be to chop billions of years off a star’s life. “
    Nell sagged on the bench. Dying sucked, even for a star.
    Apollie nodded. “We lost four worlds. Prime worlds with two habitable planets in each during the war.”
    And Earth was the Skaperian payoff.
    “So we’ll do a little scouting while we’re here. Look to see if the Founders have anything else in development.” Bei’s attention cut to Nell. “But the vaccine must be our priority.”
    With a sigh, Nell straightened on her seat. A vaccine to the Surlat strain was a bonus. “What’s the word, Doc?”
    Doc blinked. The hair in his goatee bristled in agitation.
    “Doctor?” Bei growled. “Do you have enough antibodies to start on a vaccine?”
    “I ran the scan twice.” Doc tucked the used needle and tube into a biohazard bag. “Nell Stafford isn’t infected with the Surlat strain.”
    “I’m not?” She wanted to clap, stomp her feet, and shout hallelujah. Life was good. She and Bei would leave the planet, they’d have children, they’d... Wait a minute. Her husband’s almond-shaped eyes were squinty and his nostrils flared. Why wasn’t he celebrating?
    After rising from his seat, he stood next to her. “What is she infected with?”
    “You just couldn’t let me have a minute to celebrate, could you?” She wanted to kick him. Unfortunately, his armor was too hard and her toe too soft.
    “Fermites.” Doc closed the metal encased med kit. “They’re in every organ of her body. The glow doesn’t indicate infection of the Surlat strain but these fermites. They’re taking elements in Nell Stafford’s body, creating others and replicating. I won’t know what effect they will have until the full laboratory upstairs comes on line.”
    Bei turned toward the engine room. “Brooklyn. Queens. Status report.”
    The two dark-haired Syn-En medics jostled each other in the doorway.
    Brooklyn stumbled through first. “We’ve eliminated surges, EMPs, and overloads.”
    “We’re looking for broken connections now.” Queens fidgeted next to his friend. “Anything to explain what happened.”
    “Check for fermites.” Bracing her hand on the wall, Nell pushed to her feet. “If they’re in me, they could be in the ship making gremlins.”
    Bei opened his mouth.
    The overhead lights flickered then powered on. The engines hummed, sending vibrations throughout the shuttle.
    Leaning over, Bei picked her tiara off the bench. “Perhaps you are not just queen of the Syn-En and NDA, but hold court over these fermites.”
    “I think I’d rather be able to fly or leap small buildings in a