[Liz]

My mind shed each layer of darkness, one by one, only to be replaced with a painful throbbing beneath my temples. Someone bent over me, but my eyes were still too blurry to tell who it was.

"Liz, how are you feeling?" It was Gan.

I groaned. "I've felt better. What the hell did they hit us with?"

Jack knelt by my side. "Some kind of stun pulse. Not unlike our stunners."

My eyes found their focus as I blinked. "Well, it's very effective. How long have I been out? Is everyone else okay?"

Jack answered as Gan helped me sit up. "We're okay. You've been out for almost ten hours."

I shook my head. "I'm getting too old for this."

I noticed a weight on one ankle and gazed down my leg. A thick grey metallic cuff with blinking lights surrounded my ankle. Gan and Jack each had their own. "What is this?"

Gan replied, "The latest fashion of alien proximity restraint devices. If we go very far it gives you a nasty shock. They are also very effective. I found out the hard way." He pointed to a crude black semicircle sketched on the floor, extending from the outer wall. "Get much beyond that or go outside the wall and it gets really uncomfortable."

Fortunately, the circle included one of the public toilet rooms. We were in the outer lobby of the space elevator ground-port building. A circular adobe-styled half wall lined with hard benches marked the outer extent of the open-air lobby. The formed sloped roof provided shade from the afternoon sun. Joe, a young security officer who looked like he should still be in school, kept watch over the half wall.

He came back over to us and caught Jack's attention. "Sir, there are between two and eight aliens outside within view. They come and go, but don't seem to pay any attention to us." He lifted a leg with his restraint cuff. "I suppose with these they don't have to."

Jack pivoted, gazing outside over the half-wall. His eyes returned to the young security officer, who opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it. "Is there something else, Joe?"

Joe tipped his eyes down and stammered, "Yes, sir. It's just... Why didn't they just kill us, sir?"

I interjected. "I was wondering that myself."

Jack shook his head. "Good question. They were not at all hesitant to kill during the infrastructure destruction or to put down armed resistance. I can only guess they operate under some sort of rules of engagement. Why? I don't know."

I took a deep breath. "For the moment, I am thankful-"

A faint buzzing sound outside at one end of the lobby interrupted me. We all turned our eyes to observe a small hand-sized drone flying in over the wall and under the roof overhang. It hovered and turned about to peer back at us.

Gan grinned. "It's Bob!"

Jack and I knew Bob, but Joe did not. Joe furrowed his brow and tilted his head toward Gan.

Gan explained. "Bob is my survey drone. We go way back." He beamed. "You know what this means, Liz? Ben is here. And I doubt he is alone."

Gan saluted the drone. Bob tilted back and forth in response, then turned and flew out. Jack and Joe went to the wall on opposite sides of the lobby and scanned the area outside. I felt the tingle of anticipation in my gut. Something was going to happen, but what or when?

As we waited, a familiar low-pitch machinery whine came to our ears. Both Jack and Gan turned toward me and frowned. This was a sound we did not want to hear. The aliens had reactivated one of the space elevators. Now it would be much easier for them to bring down more forces and supplies. The sound dissipated, meaning the elevator climber had lifted into the sky, riding along the cable. I felt a twinge of regret. Maybe I should have had the space elevators destroyed rather than just locked down.

Another sound came to my ears. Singing? The wordless a cappella solo, one irresistibly sweet, swirled around me. Her voice, at the same time powerful and haunting, enticed us all. We felt compelled to find its source. I moved to the half-wall to gaze outside.

Joe pointed. "There!"

Gan asked the question also on my mind. "It's Kie. Why is she singing?"

A lone singer stood on the rounded roof of a nearby building, her arms extended and her mouth open. Her song soared. It more than enticed the aliens who held us captive. Their faces became light blue as they turned toward her, standing motionless as if enchanted by a spell. All lowered their lance weapons.

https://youtu.be/BlNtrfaayKo

The percussive twangs of stunner weapons firing sounded out. Kie's song abruptly ended and she disappeared from the rooftop. The two alien soldiers nearest sagged to the ground. Another took a blast to the body, flailing back as a blue-green mist burst out from its chest. I lost sight of the action as Jack pushed me down behind the wall, but I could hear multiple shots from our stunners and their lances.

I jerked as a bushy-haired young man burst into the lobby, carrying a stunner.

Gan yelled out, his voice joyful. "Ben!"

Ben tossed his stunner gun to Jack and another from a holster to Joe. They took up positions at the wall. Ben pulled out a small thin cylindrical object from a pocket and knelt before Gan. After inserting it into a slot in the leg cuff, the restraining device opened and fell away.

Gan embraced his son.

Ben grinned, returning the hug. "Dad, I go away for just a little while and look how much trouble you all get into."

A yellow pulse struck the ceiling above my head, raining pieces of the aggregate material down on us. A cloud of dust billowed out. Another pulse caught Joe in the shoulder. He sprawled backward to the floor and yelped in pain. I rushed to help him as Jack fired his stunner. 

A black-uniformed alien appeared in the doorway  pointing a lance weapon at Gan, its face flashing dark green colors. Instead of firing, the soldier shook and slumped over the half-wall. Behind the soldier stood Mora, her lips drawn tight and her eyes narrowed. Her long dark pony-tail swayed in the breeze as she lowered her stunner gun.

Gan dropped his jaw at the sight of his wife. "Wow, Mora! But weren't you supposed to stay out of harm's way at the research station?"

She came up to him and glared. "Someone had to rescue your ass." She stabbed his chest with a finger. "I saw you get shot on the video feed. Don't you ever do that to me again!"

"Well, I..."

Mora interrupted his words by pushing him up against a wall and wrapping her arms around his neck. Standing on her toes, she pulled him into a deep kiss. It lingered as she pressed her body into his, aided by his arms.

Gan caught his breath as she broke off the kiss and leaned her head against his chest. "If this is what I get, I may have to let you rescue me again."

Mora whispered. "Just don't."

Jack smirked. "If you two are done making out, we need to get out of here."

We made our way to three hover-cars positioned behind a storage building, escorted by some from Mora's security team. Jack assisted Joe who grimaced from the pain. We passed many alien soldiers on the ground, most of them stunned, but at least two were dead. Once in the cars, we sped off to Mora and Gan's home near the outskirts of the city.

Kie met us on the porch. Gan, Jack, and I simultaneously jerked back as an alien appeared beside her. But this one wore a green tunic robe, unlike the black uniforms of the soldiers.

Kie jumped in front of the alien, holding her hands up. "It's okay. This is Ar'ell. He is with us."

The alien, Ar'ell, let out a series of tones, chirps, and warbles. Kie turned to him and sang similar sounds. She pointed at us as they continued their conversation.

I widened my eyes and turned toward Jack and Gan, whose mouths hung open. Mora and Ben grinned. I caught Kie's attention. "You speak their language?"

She smiled and nodded. This changed everything. I felt pleasant light-headedness as a weight of despair lifted. I opened my version of Pandora's Box and let hope come out.

Mora walked up to me with her own smile, putting a hand on my shoulder. She motioned toward Kie, Ben, and Ar'ell. "There is more Liz. They have a plan."