Deadly Mission Read Free

as the ship smacked into the dark-blue sludge. The thrusters died in seconds, but it didn’t matter. The force of the shark’s tentacles propelled the
Phoenix
out through the other side fast enough to avoid any damage from the acidic ooze.

    Peri punched the air.
    Diesel grinned at Otto. “See? Crazy and brilliant.”
    A sudden burst of bright light blinded Peri. “What the … ?” he said as he shielded his eyes. Peri tried squinting at the source of the light, but only when the
Phoenix
tinted the 360-monitor could he see outside. Two Xion fighter jets had shooting-star-sized searchlights trained on the bridge of their spaceship.
    â€œAttention. Receiving message from alien ships,” stated the calm voice of the
Phoenix
.
    â€œ
Zark, Sakar, Zarak
,” came over the com-unit. The alien spoke in a short, clipped language with a strange nasal growl, as if it had a cold.
    Peri pressed the bulge under his chin to adjust his SpeakEasy computer chip. All cadets and Star Fighters had the device implanted so they could understand any alien they encountered. His skull crackled with static until he found the right wavelength.
    â€œDiesel, set your language controls to frequency 08.12.77.”
    Diesel nodded and they glanced at each other as they heard the message in English for the first time. “Entering Xion space without permission is an act of war. This is your only warning. Follow us to the tollbooth or be vaporized.”
    â€œAny idea how we deal with the toll takers?” Peri asked as he followed the Xion fighter jets.
    Otto licked the sweat from his neck withhis long tongue. “It doesn’t matter! When they find me on board, we’ll be obliterated before you can say, ‘Death to Xion!’”
    Peri frowned. He wondered why the Xions and Meigwors hated each other so much. “Otto, you’d better hide.”
    â€œCowards hide!” Otto snapped. “Warriors lie in wait!”
    â€œWell, go
lie in wait
, then,” Peri said.
    Otto skulked off the bridge.
    â€œWhat a lamizoid!” Diesel said as he sat down next to Peri. Almost instantly, he sprang out of the chair again. “Yuck! Meigwor sweat!” He wiped his hand against his pants. “The sooner we get him off our ship the better. Look,” he said, twisting around to show Peri the smoking holes in his Expedition Wear pants.
    â€œGet your pants out of my face,” Peri said. “I need to concentrate.”
    The Xion fighter jets guided them to the space highway’s only ramp. A new message flashed on the monitor. “Get in line, or be disintegrated.”
    Its bluntness made Peri realize how unfriendly the Xions were, but he already knew that. They hadn’t given the IF Space Station a warning before they blew it to smithereens! His hands gripped the Nav-wheel tighter. He was going to stop these bullies if it was the last thing he ever did.
    But, for now, he had a mission to complete.
    Peri parked the
Phoenix
behind a ship surrounded by huge translucent sheets of solar-cloth. It looked like a floating angel.
    â€œIt’s beautiful,” whispered Peri.
    Suddenly, the angel’s wings unfurled like old-fashioned sails. The ship slid gracefullyforward. A thick purple beam of light blazed from the toll taker as it scanned every micro-particle of the craft.
    An electric jolt of fear passed through Peri. “Diesel, what do we do if the scan detects Otto?”
    â€œI guess we could say he’s a stowaway and hand him over,” Diesel replied. “Only a cosmic wastoid couldn’t notice something that big, ugly, hot, and sweaty.”
    â€œThat’s it!” Peri exclaimed, his mind tingling with excitement. “He’s hot and sweaty. They’re scanning for heat signatures. If the
Phoenix
is cold enough, it’ll hide Otto’s body heat.”
    â€œOh, sure, freeze us to death to save our Meigwor tour guide,” Diesel scoffed.
    Peri