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** CHAPTER 49** The silent threat

The German Shepherd Evocanis gave all his attention at the symbols and patterns that were displayed directly to his eyes through a small visor. The strange device imprinted in his brain everything that he should've learned throughout the years. For the past two weeks he had been learning to speak and read on his own, as well as absorbing other important knowledge about science and technology that surrounded his home, Canis Major.

Letting out a sigh of exhaustion, but hinting a bit of satisfaction, the German Shepherd Evo took the small tiara off his head, stood up and stretched his body.

"Taking a break, Niebo?" Rika, asked the Evo.

Not knowing anything from his past, as probably he was taken as a very young pup, Niebo was given this name not a few weeks back.

Niebo looked at Rika, but didn't respond. He seemed to be analyzing her question.

"Are you tired?" Rika now asked more directly and slowly.

"I... I am." Niebo looked at his hand paws and then he looked around thinking and searching for the right words. "I am tired of sitting. I... I will go for walk." He said with a smile.

"Go ahead, sweetheart. You've been studying since very early." Rika responded with a huge smile.

"I will back... I will be back, Rika." The German Shepherd Evo replied.

Niebo had now found a home in Sector H2, at Zone 112. To everyone's surprise, his condition was as good as Panzer's, so he was taken to Canis Major not even a day after the Rottweiler was reunited with his son.

Niebo was very intelligent and he somehow looked desperate because he couldn't speak too well. But his determination to be in par of his other adult Evo brothers and sisters was very strong. He had spent day and night studying with help of the learning enhancers and he was managing an incredible progress. He still needed some practice since he tried to rush himself and sometimes stumbled between words, but in a few months he would surely be like any other normal Evocanis.

Rika took her ComPod and walked to a small terrace next to the study room and sat in a comfy sofa. The past days were really busy because of what had been happening lately, plus she had been suffering from anxiety since she found out about the Hive.

Canis Major was in alert and as a Zone Keeper, Rika's duties included being aware at all times for news from R105, as well as keeping in constant contact with all the security managers in Canis Major, so she had very little sleep on her in the past days.

As the beige floppy eared Evocanis lied in the sofa, she snuggled a cushion. Soon, her brown eyes started closing and she could do little to avoid it. Although she knew she shouldn't be sleeping, fading away felt so good.

As soon as her thoughts started to act on themselves, announcing that she was in the borderline of being fully asleep, a vibration accompanied with a very soft chime made her come back to reality. A grunt of discomfort came from Rika as she took her ComPod and noticed an incoming call.

"Luke?" She said as the image of her brother was displayed on screen. Immediately she sat up and stretched, trying to shake off the weariness.

"Hey, little sister." The chestnut Evocanis that looked exactly like her said.

Luke was in R105, working together with the Retcan medical staff. The Siberian husky rescued from the Hive was in terrible condition and many precautions needed to be taken in order for him to fully recuperate. Since H2 112 was chosen as the Evo's home, Luke would be in charge of following through his treatments.

"We are almost home, Rika."

"That's good to hear." Rika responded enthusiastically. "I will get everything ready for his arrival."

"You can call him Blitz."

"What; you found out his name?" Rika asked surprised.

"I'm afraid not. Husky decided to name him." The tone in Luke suggested some disappointment. There was something about this Evo that they were just discovering.

"So he hasn't spoken yet?" Rika asked, sounding just as disappointed as Luke.

"Apparently he's mute. We've examined him and discovered that his vocal cords are under-developed. He can produce noises, but speech is not possible for him."

It was rather disappointing, but nothing that would keep him form living a normal life as an Evocanis.

"We still have to do some studies." Luke continued "A DNA test needs to be done as well, not only to Blitz but also to Niebo. That way we can at least try to identify who they really are and if their families are still among us."

Rika told everyone that a new member for their zone would arrive in a few minutes. Everyone was excited about the news and awaited anxiously.

After a while, Luke informed that they where in the complex already and walking towards the zone entrance. Rika rushed to meet them at the Zone's lobby. Jade and another Evo named Viz where with her. Not a few minutes passed when Rika saw a group of Evos walking through the green areas of their Zone complex. It was Luke, Hasky, Husky, Fx and another husky that she couldn't recognize; she knew that Evo was the new one.

"Rika!" Luke yelled. It had been two weeks since they hadn't seen each other.

Rika didn't hesitate for a second and ran to greet her brother.

"I missed you sister." Luke said as he briefly embraced Rika. It was a bittersweet moment considering that they had found their brothers and little could be done at the moment. Hasky and her family greeted everyone and without waiting, they presented their new friend.

"So you are Blitz?" Rika asked the mysterious husky Evocanis. Blitz didn't respond and just watched his surroundings suspiciously. His almost white sky blue eyes were always wide open and showed no signs of emotions.

"I know you are surprised, brother. But this is your home." Viz told Blitz. "I imagine what you went through and we do understand you might feel confused."

"He had a rough start," Husky said. "He probably doesn't remember his life here, so it's comprehensible that he is confused."

"Wait," suddenly, Jade walked forward. She looked perplexed as she scanned the air around them. "Someone else is with you?"

This concerned the group for a second, although they really didn't perceive it as something wrong.

"What do you mean, Jade?" Luke asked.

Jade didn't respond and walked towards Blitz. She seemed precautious and approached slowly. She reached for the Siberian husky Evocanis and touched him gently. This startled Blitz but was instantly told by the others not to worry; that Jade was blind and needed to feel him to get to know him.

Jade touched Blitz across his ribcage, his arms, and finally caressed his face.

"You... are an Evocanis..." Jade said. Her expression was of concern and her friends noticed this. And the way she almost said it as a question was very strange.

"What's wrong, Jade?" Rika asked.

Jade kept on caressing Blitz's face as if double checking something. She looked aside in distrust for a second, but she immediately looked back at Blitz with a smile.

"Welcome home, brother." The blind Border Collie Evo mix said. With this, Blitz was now officially a new member of the Evocanis society.

Some time passed and lights started to dim in Canis Major; it was time when Evos got ready to go to sleep. Niebo slept over at Viz and Lynn's room, while Blitz stayed temporarily at Rika's room together with Luke and Jade.

It was a normal night as usual, and although Blitz found it hard to fall asleep, he eventually did. Luke kept a good look at him at all times to verify that his health was improving or if he showed some signs of illness because of how malnourished he unfortunately was.

But things weren't as peaceful over at the Retcan cruiser R105. A tense meeting was being held in the Strategy room regarding the situation they had been facing for the past weeks.

...We didn't have weapons to defend ourselves... Alpha was... He didn't make it after our escape... This message contains the information that we gathered of that deposit and also its location. Do whatever is in your hands to save them, but be careful; the place is crawling with those things. They are far more intelligent and stronger than before. A stealth approach will be necessary... Don't worry about me. I will find a way back to Lusceonis. The Evocanis are the priority right now...

The last portion of the strange message sent by Zonda was played back. Through the darkness of the room, a pair of yellow eyes shined wide opened; no matter how many times he went through it, he could hardly believe what he had just heard.

"It is very clear you have nothing to do with this message, Zonda." Silver said as she saw her friend once again in complete disbelief.

"I don't know what to make out of this, Silver." Zonda replied. "I mean, Alpha is here with me. We didn't... I don't know what this is."

"As we told you before, we never managed to communicate with R105 or Canis Major while we were trapped in Harena Sanguis." Alpha continued. "But what's harder to believe is this thing about the Machine's base. We didn't know about this until we arrived here."

"Well, the message wasn't a lie; that's for sure." Silver again spoke.

"And that's what worries me, my brothers." Shadow, the veteran Retcan spoke up. "Don't you see it? This was obviously done to lure us into the Machine's territory. What else could it be?"

"Shadow might be right." Alpha replied to his brother Retcan's idea. "Titan, did you managed to locate where this message came from? I almost bet it came from the Hive itself."

"No, Alpha." Titan replied. "I'm afraid it wasn't from the Hive. The location was never verified. It came from various locations in the universe, so we deducted you might've sent it while you were traveling through a wormhole."

"Why would we do that?" Zonda spoke up. "Communications are impossible during a jump."

"Trust me, brother. We have that very clear." Titan replied to Zonda's concerns.

"Listen to me, everyone!" Silver suddenly stood up and spoke strongly. "I care not if Zonda or Alpha sent that message. They are here and it shouldn't be a concern anymore. What I need to know is who had access to our location, who knew about what happened in that planet, and why did they sent that message impersonating our brother Zonda. Not only our security but Canis Major's as well is at risk. Do I make myself clear?"

"I understand that Silver." Titan replied to his sister's impatience. "Brothers and sisters; my suspicions are that the machines might be behind all this."

"Titan is right." Shadow supported his friend's theory. "I had a very bad feeling, even before we went to that place where the machines have settled their base."

"Are you sure?" Silver asked. "Titan, what have you found now that we have infiltrated the machines systems?"

"Nothing, Silver. I mean nothing that would suggest that the machines are preparing for an attack."

"What about the Evocanis that are being held?"

"They seem to be studying them. They perform all sorts of experiments on them, but it's not clear why are they doing that. It's like they are searching for something."

It was frustrating for Silver and her crew. There was nothing they could do about the Evocanis that were being held in the Hive. For now, their major concern was a major security breach in not only R105 but also in Canis Major. This was the only theory that could explain that fake message.

Silver and her main crew spent hours planning what they would do in the following days. A major system checking was going to be needed, even though this might take them weeks to complete.

"I can do that, Silver. But know that our defenses might be lowered while me and my team check everything." Titan replied to Silver's orders.

"I don't care, Titan. I want every Bit of information double checked. It doesn't matter how long it takes you to complete this."

"It will be done Captain."

"Zonda," Silver then directed to the General. "I know that you and Alpha have gone through very difficult moments, but I need you two to have our defense squadron ready at all times for as long as Titan and his team take to check our systems."

"Don't worry, Captain. We will be ready." Zonda replied. His body still wrapped in bandages as his wounds weren't fully closed yet.

After many hours, the meeting was about to conclude, until Silver's personal ComPod announced a message form the chief medic.

"What is it, Red?"

"Silver, there is something we need to discuss urgently." Red said. His tone suggested discomfort. There was something he came across that unsettled him.

"Red, right now is not the time. R105 is going into higher alert and we need to prepare ourselves."

"Silver; it's important. It's regarding one of the Evos that was rescued from the hive."

"What about them?" Silver asked now worried on what Red might've encounter.

"Luke requested a DNA test to help identify them and to see if their families are still alive. So I did."

"And?" Silver's patience was already on it's limits. But somehow she felt that what Red had to say was very important. She gestured her main crew to return as they were already leaving the room.

"Well, the test results of one of them, the one who was named Blitz; his result is very concerning. According to the age test, he's no older than six years."

"How is that possible? The Evos were taken thirteen years ago."

"Well, the machines might've been breeding them for some reason, but that's really not what concerns me." Red took a deep breath a he grabbed a large handheld device where he kept all his notes. He had examined those results many times, but still couldn't believe that information.

Silver had activated the loud speakers in her device before Red could inform her so everyone in the room heard those confusing words. They were shocked by Red's confession... All they were going through right now was difficult enough for them to assimilate, and now a new problem had arisen.

Eighty percent of Canis Major's lights were completely off. The rest were dimmed at their minimum. Temperature had lowered considerably and silence engulfed the massive ship. Canis Major was in its artificial night cycle and most Evocanis were asleep.

But in H2 112, Husky, Hasky and Fx were again having problems to sleep. Their room was almost in absolute darkness, except for the faint light that the artificial window let in due to the space landscape that was displayed every night.

The three of them were snugged in their thick sheets, talking about things regarding the D.E Project and the future rescue mission that they would eventually embark to.

"It is frustrating." Husky said. "I know that if we all arm ourselves we could outnumber the machines and manage to rescue our brothers and sisters."

"It's something that I though of. And I'm sure that we are ready to do such thing." Hasky replied. "But what we have in numbers, we lack in ships and equipment."

"Why don't we fly Canis Major to the Hive and invade them the way they did to us?" Fx suggested.

"Surprisingly, that's not a bad idea." Hasky replied to the orange Evo. "But think of the risk that we would run if we do that. Canis Major is massive, and even if its defenses are highly advanced comparing to thirteen years ago, that could lead to many losses. There is simply too much terrain that would be open for a direct hit. Plus, we don't know the weapons that the machines might've developed after all these years."

"I think you're right, Hasky. We have to think it through." Husky added. "If we tell everyone what we have discovered, there will be no way back. I feel that our brothers that are being held in the Hive are safe for now. Taking the wrong approach will endanger them."

"I am with Silver." Hasky said. "I will not accept any losses. We have to plan this perfectly so no one dies this time."

"I just want to know if they are alive." Fx once again admitted.

"I know, Fx." Hasky again spoke. "And I promise we will find out what happened to your parents. I want to know what happened not only to them but also to my brother and my best friend. We just have to be patient and think smart."

The clock in their wall indicated two in the morning. They have lost track of how many hours they spent discussing inside the sheets of their bed.

Soon their eyelids became heavy, announcing that their bodies have had enough for that day. But before they could even manage ten minutes of sleep, someone entered their room and woke them up.

Luke called for them worried. There was something strange going on.

"What's wrong, Luke?" Hasky asked concerned. She could feel the discomfort in Luke, making the adrenaline in her body rush.

"I need you three right now." The chestnut Evo said. Outside their room, they could hear Rika speaking through her ComPod very worried.

Hasky woke Fx and Husky up and soon they were out of bed.

"Tell me what's going on, Luke!" Hasky demanded as she put her red suit back on.

"It's Blitz. He's gone."

"What do you mean he's gone? Maybe he just went for a walk. Remember he's not used to all this."

"No, Hasky. There is something else. He took my ComPod and downloaded a map of Canis Major into it from the studio's computer. Not only that, but he got into the E.M.P vault and took one."

"What?" Not only Hasky but also Husky and Fx were speechless. Added to the fact that they were really drained, this was certainly very confusing.

Dressed now, Hasky and her boys walked with Luke and Rika to the Zone's lobby. Words were few. They didn't know what to think of this or what to do.

"Have you tried calling him?" Hasky asked Luke.

"Yes, Hasky. He didn't respond."

"Wait, but how in the world he managed to use the ComPod and how did he knew how o download that information into it?" Fx now asked worried.

"Fx is right. He has been here not even ten hours. What's going on?" Husky now asked concerned.

"Do you think I know guys? That's why I'm asking for your help!"

"We have to find him." Hasky affirmed. "Luke, call everyone in the D.E team. Tell them that we need their help."

"It's been done. I already told K9 about this."

"Luke, are you sure he was the one who took the E.M.P?" Hasky asked.

"Who else could've been, Hasky? The vault is always close, and it was before I turned everything off and went to bed. Jade woke me up, telling me that Blitz went to the bathroom but he never came out. She fell asleep for a few minutes, but then woke up to a noise. When she looked for Blitz, she couldn't find him. That's when she alerted me."

"We need to check the surveillance cameras. That way we will know where he went." Fx suggested.

"Fx, he could be anywhere!" Husky said.

"No, but Fx is right. That will at least give us clue of where he was headed to." Hasky agreed.

"Ok, let's go to the studio."

They quickly walked to the studio to go through the surveillance footage, when suddenly they were stopped by Rika. She looked worried and held her ComPod as she had just finished a call.

"What is it Rika?" Luke asked his sister when she saw the concern I her eyes. No; it was complete disbelief what her eyes reflected.

"It was R105... They did a DNA test on Niebo and Blitz."

"I hear you. So happened?" Luke held Rika from her shoulders.

"I don't know... Why would Red tell me that? He said that Blitz is not an Evocanis..."