Lecorondia`s hand balled around the scrap of fabric tinged with her baby`s blood.

　　It felt so fragile in her hands, as though it might tear at any minute. She hugged it tighter to herself, eyes locked onto the screen. As she watched that man shoot her baby she forced herself to remain calm. They couldn`t see her rage. Her fear. No. They would need to see her in control. While this was bad—and it was bad—they had one thing going for them now.

　　They knew where her darling boy was.

　　If this idiot had simply done as he was told and called them, this entire situation could have been avoided. Now her beloved pet was in more danger and the Galactic Government might decide to step in personally. In a way, she was shocked they hadn`t already. Enough time had passed there was little chance they didn`t know about her interview.

　　Already she could imagine the fierce debate amongst the senators while Kulthruack demanded the bloodiest answer. Well, she wouldn`t let them. All she needed to do was find Erodicilee. If she could get him back, they could go home.

　　Her thoughts shattered as she heard a single bark from the screen. One that terrified her to her core. Not for herself, or even for her darling. No. That single word, that single video clip, would be enough justification to mobilize in force.

　　"Die!"

　　The bark, Erodicilee`s declaration of murderous intent, shocked her more than the fact he could speak. It took immense effort to concentrate on Lucy`s words as the video ended, but she managed.

　　"Lecorondia," Lucy whispered to her. "What the hell have you unleashed?"

　　"We need to find him."

　　Lecorondia didn`t care about anyone hearing the fear or desperation in her voice now. There wasn`t time. This was bad. So bad. If he`d become smart enough to talk then who knew where he`d end up next. They`d told her not to let him eat living flesh. Now she was going to pay the price.

　　Her entire body shook, even as she forced herself to her feet. She met Lucy`s eyes, and the woman looked as scared as she felt. Lecorondia was grateful she didn`t know the full story. If this got out to the Galactic Government, who knew what information didn`t matter. They were all dead.

　　"We need to find him. We need to do it now." Her words came out in a rush. "Jerry. Drive. Lucy. Get Julep. Tell him he needs to come with me right now. Go. Go now."

　　To her shock, Lucy leapt to her feet and left without another word. Jerry, however, didn`t follow suit.

　　"Ambassador. We need to talk."

　　"There isn`t any time," Lecorondia snapped.

　　Jerry shook his head. "There is. It`s not a long trip by car. You will tell me what`s going on now, or else. What have you gotten us into?"

　　"Are you threatening me, human?" Rage flared through her, as she opened her mouth and showed off her fangs.

　　To her surprise, Jerry didn`t flinch. He stared at her, cold and impassive, as though he was an asteroid against a child`s drone. There was no give there.

　　"You don`t scare me, Lecorondia. You`re a lying, manipulative bitch. But you won`t kill me. So calm down and explain what`s gotten you into this state, lass."

　　There wasn`t a single waiver of dread to his tone, and when she flicked out her tongue he didn`t taste afraid. This was a man who would refuse her, and she knew none of her tricks would work. So, she did something different. She told the honest truth.

　　"My name is Lecorondia. I`m an actress, the politician gig is recent. I`m here to get my baby back. He has a power to evolve when he eats living flesh and gains abilities suited to the environment. His creators designed it so he could protect me wherever I ended up."

　　Jerry raised an eyebrow. "And?"

　　"And he`s not supposed to be here. The Galactic Government appointed me as ambassador to sort the mess out. However, if I can`t they have a plan B of sorts." Her words trailed off, and she looked him dead in the eye. "Everyone dies. Me. You. This country. Gone."

　　"Doomsday?" His tone still didn`t waiver.

　　She nodded, impressed by him despite her raging emotions. "That`s if we`re lucky."

　　Briefly, neither spoke. Then Jerry sighed, and rubbed the back of his hands against his eyes. She`d never seen him look so exhausted.

　　"Fine. So you`re saying if we don`t get your pet back, we`re getting nuked."

　　"Precisely."

　　He sighed again. "Alright. Not a goddamn word to anyone about this."

　　She followed his gaze to the laptop. It sat there, the image of Erodicilee still on the screen, bloody muzzle and all. Her tail twitched.

　　"What about Lucy?"

　　"She`s a smart girl," Jerry said. "But she doesn`t need this. Now come on. We need to get this wrapped."If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it`s taken without the author`s consent. Report it.

　　Lecorondia nodded. "One last thing."

　　With a simple flick of her tail, she sent the laptop crashing to the ground. It sparked, fuzzing, before she moved to the bar and poured herself a glass of water. When it was full, she returned and dumped the water over the laptop. Then smashed it against the table for good measure.

　　"Feeling better?" Jerry asked dryly.

　　"The last thing we need is someone to recover what`s on there. Now let`s go."

　　They ran into Julep on the way, and from the way people were staring it was clear he`d come running.

　　She noted Lucy wasn`t with him, but dismissed it as she gestured for him to follow her. Without a word, he fell into line and they all started walking towards the van. Her tail wanted to flick, her hands wanted to ball into fists and most of all she wanted to scream. Instead, she smiled and waved to the onlookers, throwing bits of small talk at them as she passed.

　　"Your costume looks amazing darling."

　　"I do hope the patrol is going well, sir."

　　"Why hello little one, I hope you`re having a nice day."

　　Lecorondia couldn`t help but find the routine relaxing to a degree. A part of her was happy to fall back into old habits. It was a buffer of sorts against the fear filling her. Julep stuck close as though sensing her distress, and she saw him glaring at those who appeared like they might interrupt. Not the best optics, but it was better than being delayed.

　　As Jerry moved inside to get the vans keys, Lucy appeared tucking her cellphone back into her pocket. Her attention flicked to Jerry, before she shifted her gaze to Lecorondia and gave a wide fake smile. It did nothing to mitigate the worry in her voice.

　　"Oh good, he found you. What are we doing next?"

　　Lecorondia narrowed her eyes, as she looked at the woman`s pocket. She knew what the device was used for, of course. Multiple people had regaled her about them over the two days. That could cause a problem.

　　"Lucy. Did you message someone?" She kept her voice even as she asked.

　　Guilt swept over Lucy`s face, but soon it was gone, driven off by determination as she looked Lecorondia in the eyes.

　　"It is my duty to inform Mr. Black of developments."

　　A flash of rage filled her at the thought. "The same man who organized our interview?"

　　"Yes."

　　She couldn`t deny that decision sounded like a problem waiting to happen. If this leaked out, or their countries leaders decided to get involved personally? Things would go badly, quickly. Lecoronda formed the sudden mental image of being asked to contact the Galactic Government on their behalf. That would be messy.

　　"Has he replied?"

　　"No. I`m sure he`s busy."

　　The sign of relief caught people`s attention, but she ignored them. That was something, at least. With a nod, she gestured to the van.

　　"Julep. Stay here, keep an eye on things. I don`t need people thinking I`m packing off for good."

　　"Are you sure?" He asked, and Lecorondia nodded

　　"Yes, now we need to go. Come on. We do not want to be late."

　　***

　　Excitment flooded Lecorondia as she almost leapt from the back of the van.

　　Without hesitation she raced across the grass, nearly tripping and falling into the blood that stained the ground as started about. Her baby was here. They`d found him. The quest was done! She resisted the urge to shout in joy.

　　"Baby!" She called. "Mommy is here! Where are you?"

　　 Nerves flooded her as she waited for him to race out of the caves, barking and wagging his little tail. A flash of guilt sprang up at not bringing his treats but she ignored it. He wouldn`t care. Besides, when she got him back home to her mansion he could eat treats until he burst.

　　Even as she smiled, another part of her nagged in the back of her mind. It asked inconvenient questions, ones she much rather would have ignored.

　　"What if he`s changed? What if he`s no longer the same anymore?"

　　She ignored those, waving them away with a mental hand. That didn`t matter. Yes, he`d evolved but she knew it was something he could do. From the video it was obvious he hadn`t changed in form. Lecorondia had worried about that, she didn`t want to end up with some grotesque beast to take care of. No. Thankfully, however, her Erodicilee remained the cutest little thing in the world.

　　Lucy called something out, but she ignored her and walked into the entrance of the cave. She continued to call for her pet, voice echoing in the cavernous space. He`d heard her for sure. All she needed to do was wait.

　　Then the voice in the back of her mind piped up again, with one final question.

　　"If he hungers for humans, shouldn`t you be paying attention?"

　　Lecorondia whirled, terrified for a second she would find Lucy and Jerry in trouble. Her heart raced, but it steady as she saw them watching her. Both looked concerned. That was alright.

　　"Is he still here?" Lucy asked, as she stepped around the pools of blood.

　　"I don`t see why he wouldn`t be." Lecorondia smiled. "Oh I can`t wait to introduce you. He does the cutest tricks on command."

　　Lucy nodded stiffly. "That`s great. Is he still here? Can you tell anyway?"

　　"I mean, no. I don`t have anything to say he wouldn`t be."

　　"He is." That came from Jerry, who was standing close to the entrance now, gesturing to the wall.

　　She moved over and started, watching the smear of blood that trailed along the rocks. It started solid before fading further into the cave. Lecorondia wondered what he`d carried away to make such a thing. Not that it mattered. He was here.

　　"We need to cordon this place off." Jerry said, voice dour. "Keep people out until we find him."

　　Lucy rolled her eyes. "Please. If those Media vultures find out there`s a place we don`t want them to go, it`s the only place they`ll set up."

　　"Make several. Keep them busy. I`ve done it before." Lecorondia didn`t stick around to see what they`d say, instead she moved further inside.

　　The caves all looked the same to her, but she moved along the same twists and turns as Mark had followed. When she found the room where he`d shot Erodicilee she paused. Signs of his blood were spread all around. She reached forward, dipping her fingers into it. It was sticky, but unmistakably his.

　　Rage filled her. If the human wasn`t dead, she`d hunt him down herself. How dare he!

　　She took another step, there was a flash of light, and suddenly she was no longer in the cave. There was a distinct hum of a spaceship`s air vents, and she felt the recycled air cool on her scales.

　　Lecorondia wanted to scream, but instead she whirled, unable to find the screen she knew should be displaying the senators. The room she was in was small, and light with a single bulb. Aside from a small cot, the only other thing was a familiar orange jumpsuit. Though, she knew, this one wasn`t a movie prop.

　　She moved to the door, and flipped open the flap. Outside she saw a corridor, and a Blitz Worm guard. Without turning, he spoke in a robotic tone.

　　"Please put on the jumpsuit. The Galactic Government demands your presence immediately. Do not resist."

　　Lecorondia screamed in frustration.